JOHN  SHERMAN; 

WHAT  HE  HAS  SAID  AND  DONE, 

BEING    A    HISTORY    OF    THE 

LIFE  AND  PUBLIC  SERVICES 


OF    THE 


HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN, 

SECRETARY  OF  THE  TREASURY  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

BY  THE 
REV.  S.  A.  BROXSON,  D.D. 


COLUMBUS,  O. : 
H.  W.  DERBY  &  CO.,  PUBLISHERS, 

1880. 


COPYRIGHT.  1880,  H.  W.  DERBY  &  Co. 


ELECTROTYPED  AT 

FRANKLIN   TYPE   FOUNDRY, 

CINCINNATI. 


CONTENTS. 


INTRODUCTION, 5_14 

CHAP. 

I.     The  Sherman  Family, 15-26 

II.     Personal  History, 27-61 

III.  The  Guild,  Mr.  Sherman's  Specialty,         .        .  62-70 

IV.  Election  to  Congress, 71-87 

V.     XXXVth  Congress, 88-104 

VI.  XXXVIth  Congress— First  Session,          .         .  105-119 

VII.  XXXVIth  Congress— Second  Session,        .        .  120-130 

VII F.  In  the  Senate, 131-146 

IX.  Resumption  Contemplated,          ....  147-154 

X.  Preparing  for  Resumption,         ....  155-165 

XI.  Revenues  and  Expenses,     .        .        .        .        .  166-178 

XII.  The  Panic  of  1873, 179-190 

XIII.  The  Resumption  Act, 191-202 

XIV.  Coinage,  .     • 203-209 

XV.  Efforts  at  Repeal  Answered,       ....  210-217 

XVI.     Alleged  Discrepancies, 218-228 

XVII.    New  York  Custom  House,          ....  229-238 

XVIII.    Portland  Speech, 239-268 

CONCLUSION, 269-272 

Uii) 


M106562 


Efetf 


INTKODTJCT1OK 


THE  following  sketch  has  been  prepared,  not  at  Mr. 
Sherman's  request,  nor  that  of  his  friends,  but  by  his  con 
sent,  with  the  caution  that  there  should  be  no  exagger 
ation.  It  was  his  evident  wish  to  be  presented  to  those 
who  know  him  not,  just  as  he  appears  to  those  who  do 
know  him.  All  that  relates  to  the  Sherman  family  and 
ancestry  has  been  gathered  from  authentic  historians  of 
Connecticut.  The  facts  of  his  private  personal  history 
have  been  gathered  from  the  writer's  own  knowledge,  and 
from  that  of  Mr.  Sherman's  sister,  and  his  neighbors,  cor 
rected  by  himself. 

It  is  intended  by  the  writer  to  make  this  narrative  a 
plain,  simple,  common-place  statement  of  the  leading  and 
characteristic  facts  of  Mr.  Sherman's  life;  to  cover  up 
nothing  that  would  tell  against  him,  and  exaggerate  noth 
ing  in  his  favor.  It  is-  firmly  believed  that  whoever  reads 
this  sketch,  and  afterwards  makes  His  acquaintance,  will 
find  Mr.  Sherman  the  same  straightforward,  earnest,  la 
borious  servant  of  the  public  that  he  is  here  represented 
to  be. 

This  book  is  meant  to  be,  not  an  argument  to  support 
a  candidate  for  the  Presidency,  but  such  a  statement  of 
what  Mr.  Sherman  has  said  and  done  as  shall  enable  an 
intelligent  public  to  judge  whether  or  not  the  subject  of  it 
worthily  deserves  to  be  President. 


Ti  INTRODUCTION. 

Lest,  however,  some  may  take  up  this  little  volume  that 
have  not  the  leisure  nor  the  taste  to  wade  through  "the 
ponderous  deeds  and  solid  speeches  here  so  briefly  stated, 
nor  the  time  and  thought  needed  to  appreciate  the  efforts 
by  which  so  mighty  a  work  has  been  achieved,  the  writer 
will  present  a  brief  digest  of  the  facts  and  the  reasons  for 
presenting  them. 

The  writing  and  publishing  of  a  sketch  of  Mr.  Sher 
man's  life  at  this  time  will  necessarily  be  regarded  as  an 
attempt  to  pave  his  way  to  the  Presidency.  The  publi 
cation  of  it  may  mean  that;  but  in  the  whole  sketch,  as 
it  now  appears,  that  thought  was  very  little  in  the  writer's 
mind.  It  is  his  conviction  that  resumption  has  made  Mr. 
Sherman  a  greater  man  than  the  Presidency  ever  can. 
As  the  capture  of  Yicksburg,  the  surrender  of  Lee,  and 
squelching  the  rebellion  has  made  General  Grant  greater 
than  President  Grant,  so  resumption  and  the  victory  over 
the  frauds  in  the  New  York  Custom  House  have  proved 
Mr.  Sherman  a  greater  man  than  the  Presidency  ever  can. 

Still  multitudes  in  this  land  will  put  the  question  to  this 
narrative,  drawn  up  by  his  friend,  whether  John  Sherman 
is  a  suitable  man  for  the  Presidency  of  the  United  States. 
Let  us  consider — 

I.  What  qualities  are  required  in  a  President? 

II.  Whether  Mr.  Sherman  is  possessed  of  those  qualifi 
cations. 

I.  The  qualities  required  in  a  President  are: 
1st.  He  should  be  a  man  that  can  manage  well  his  own 
business.  To  do  this  requires  that  one  should  govern 
himself.  An  impulsive,  heedless  man  may,  by  some  sud 
den  strike,  amass  great  wealth,  but  by  a  move  equally 
sudden  he  may  lose  it  all.  With  such  a  man  it  would 
never  be  safe  to  intrust  the  government  of  a  nation. 


INTRODUCTION.  vii 

2d.  To  be  eminently  successful  he  "must  be  temperate 
in  all  things."  Neither  "a  gluttonous  man  nor  a  wine- 
bibber"  can  safely  and  judiciously  conduct  his  oicn  affairs. 
No  man  can  excessively  indulge  his  appetites  without  im 
pairing  his  judgment.  There  may  be  a  time  when  the 
duties  of  the  Presidency  will  require  the  most  nicely  bal 
anced  exercise  of  the  judgment;  and  excessive  indulgence 
may  be  attended  with  the  most  terrific  consequences. 
With  a  well-balanced  judgment,  Louis  Napoleon  would 
hardly  have  commenced  war  with  Germany  when  he  did. 
There  are  times,  in  the  midst  of  popular  excitement,  when 
great  coolness  and  deliberation  are  required.  Such  times 
are  by  no  means  rare,  and  a  man  with  a  cool,  calculating 
head,  a  man  of  nerve  and  firmness,  a  man  that  fears  noth 
ing  but  wrong-doing,  may  be  worth  vastly  more  to  the 
nation  than  one  with  the  opposite  qualities. 

3d.  We  need  a  man  for  President  who,  by  his  training 
and  culture,  will  sustain  the  dignity  of  the  office,  and 
command  the  respect  of  the  nation,  as  well  as  that  of  the 
representatives  of  foreign  nations.  The  success  of  the 
present  administration  is  doubtless  very  much  attributable 
to  the  dignity  and  unsullied  purity  of  the  executive  man 
sion. 

4th.  We  need  a  man  extensively  educated,  at  least  prac 
tically,  in  the  science  of  government;  and  one  that  under 
stands  not  only  our  own  government,  its  constitution  and 
laws,  but  those  of  other  nations  with  which  we  come  in 
contact. 

5th.  We  need  a  man  who  has  ideas  and  opinions  of  hw 
own,  and  has  courage  to  express  them.  A  man  may  have 
the  best  thoughts,  and  form  the  best  and  wisest  plans,  but 
if  he  be  too  timid  to  express  them  till  he  learns  whether 
they  will  be  accepted,  they  will  come  too  late  from  one 


viii  INTRODUCTION. 

who  is  appointed  leader.  He  must  be  learned  in  the  art 
of  governing  sufficiently  to  know  the  best  plans  and 
measures,  honest  enough  to  adopt  them,  and  have  firmness 
enough  to  carry  them  through  in  opposition  to  his  most 
devoted  friends. 

6th.  To  make  the  best  kind  of  a  President,  he  must 
have  forecast  or  prescience  enough  to  suggest  and  urge  the 
adoption  of  plans  that  are  needed  to  take  effect,  often  years 
in  advance.  One  that  occupies  a  position  sufficiently  ele 
vated  to  look  so  far  ahead,  may  have  much  to  contend 
with.  He  may  seem  to  those  around  like  a  dreamer,  a 
visionary  enthusiast,  and  have  hard  battles  to  fight  with 
his  friends.  It  may  require  much  patience,  cool  reason 
ings,  curbing  the  temper  under  provocation,  and  long 
waiting. 

7th.  It  is  desirable  that  the  President  of  the  United 
States  should  be  a  man  of  some  magnetic  power  over  the 
minds  and  wills  of  men.  This  may  be  of  two  different 
kinds.  One  may  be  a  genial,  whole-souled  man,  taking 
the  people  right  to  his  heart.  This  is  the  most  pleasing 
form,  and  on  some  occasions,  and  for  some  emergencies, 
may  be  the  best.  The  other  is  of  a  commanding,  energetic 
power  of  will.  This  is  a  force  that  carries  the  mightiest 
sway,  and  doubtless  was  the  secret  of  Napoleon's  power. 
We  do  not  read  that  he  was  much  given  to  ''shaking 
hands,"  that  he  was  on  familiar  terms  with  those  about 
him,  that  he  was  "hale  fellow  well  met''  with  any  body. 
His  real  force  lay  in  the  unbending  majesty  of  his  will,  and 
a  mystic  power  of  making  other  wills  succumb  to  his. 

8th.  We  need  a  man  that  is  unquestionably  loyal  to  a 
republican  form  of  government. 

9th.  We  need  a  man  that  has  been  long  enough  before 
the  public  to  let  us  know,  not  only  that  he  professes  all 


INTRODUCTION,  ir 

these  things,  or  that  his  friends  claim  them  for  him,  but  to 
test  him  in  trying  circumstances,  and  learn  whether  the^e 
good  qualities  are  genuine  or  shams. 

II.  Does  Mr.  Sherman  possess  the  qualities  here  pre 
scribed  ?  A  survey  of  this  sketch  it  is  believed  will  give  a 
decided  affirmative  answer. 

1st.  As  to  the  management  of  affairs.  During  all  his 
course,  from  the  very  commencement  of  his  business  life, 
his  maxim  has  been  always  to  keep  his  expenses  within  his 
income.  Because  he  is  comfortably  provided  for,  some 
have  hinted  (but  no  responsible  charge  was  ever  made  to 
that  effect)  that  he  has  used  his  position  to  accumulate 
wealth.  No  instance  of  any  improper  use  of  his  position 
for  any  such  purpose  has  been  or  can  be  named.  A  young 
lawyer  that  could  lay  aside  a  thousand  dollars  a  year,  from 
the  age  of  twenty-one,  can  be  trusted  to  manage  the  affairs 
of  the  nation.  Mr.  Sherman  has  made  many  investments, 
and  the  writer  can  not  learn  that  he  ever  made  an  unsuc 
cessful  one,  except  that  the  winter  froze  in  his  boat  and 
cargo  in  the  Muskingum  River,  when  he  was  sixteen  years 
old.  Certainly  it  will  be  safe  to  intrust  the  government 
in  the  hands  of  one  so  successful  in  conducting  his  own 
interests. 

2d.  As  to  appetite,  whether  eating  or  drinking,  sleeping 
or  waking,  business  or  amusement,  no  man  ever  controlled 
himself  more  perfectly  than  Secretary  Sherman.  When 
on  the  point  of  being  mobbed  at  Toledo  he  entirely  dis 
armed  the  infuriate  masses  by  his  very  coolness  and  calm 
ness.  The  public  may  be  assured  that  no  emergency  in  the 
government  will  arise  to  disconcert  him.  This  self-control 
is,  in  part,  the  secret  of  his  control  over  others. 

3d.  Does  Secretary  Sherman  possess  the  kind  and  the 


x  INTRODUCTION. 

degree  of  culture  required  for  the-  office  of  President  of  the 
United  States? 

The  main  elements  of  the  highest  culture  may  be  classed 
under  three  heads : 

1.  Heredity. 

2.  Education. 

3.  Personal  energy  and  talent, 

1st.  Hereditary  culture  or  blood  is  of  no  small  account  in 
fitting  a  man  for  a  commanding  position  in  society.  Here 
we  may  be  met  by  the  fact  that  the  lamented  Lincoln  was 
of  humble  origin,  and  came  up  by  his  own  efforts  from 
obscurity.  No  doubt  his  parents  were  poor,  and  he  was 
thus  deprived  of  many  of  the  advantages  of  an  early  edu 
cation.  But  the  strong  probability  is  that  Lincoln  in 
herited  a  long  line  of  ancestral  culture  of  the  choicest  kind. 
Heredity  often  dips  into  the  ground  and  disappears,  for 
sometimes  two  or  three  generations.  We  know  not  what 
Lincoln's  father  might  have  been  had  he  not  been  cut  off 
by  the  Indians,  nor  what  was  the  wealth  and  culture  of  his 
grandfather  in  Virginia,  nor  of  his  Quaker  great-grand 
father  in  Pennsylvania ;  but  there  is  little  doubt  that  he 
was  a  Lincoln,  of  Lincolnshire,  in  England,  and  that  he 
was  heir  to  the  choicest  culture  of  any  in  that  shire.  It 
may  have  been  remote,  but  not  too  remote  to  appear  in  the 
noblest  specimen  of  manhood  that  America  has  produced. 
In  this  respect  Lincoln  may  have  had  the  advantage  of  our 
Secretary.  Mr.  Sherman's  ancestry  is  traceable  not  to  any 
rank  of  nobility  except  merit,  and  to  the  solid,  liberty- 
loving  yoemanry  of  the  county  of  Suffolk.  Being  trans 
ferred  to  this  country,  the  family  never  ceased  (as  will 
appear  in  this  narrative)  to  hold  a  leading  position  in  the 
counsels  of  town,  state,  and  the  nation.  The  term  Honor 
able  has  been  prefixed  to  some  seven  generations  of  Sher- 


INTRODUCTION,  xt 

mans,  not  by  prescription,  but  by  merit  among  his  peers; 
and  when  the  Stoddard  blood,  inheriting  some  of  the  in 
tellect  of  Jonathan  Edwards,  came  to  mingle  with  the 
Shermans,  it  certainly  tells  admirably  in  favor  of  the 
hereditary  culture  of  the  Honorable  John  Sherman. 

2d.  In  education,  as  will  be  seen,  Mr.  Sherman's  ad 
vantages  were  upon  a  par  with  most  of  the  statesmen  that 
grew  up  with  him,  having  been  drilled  by  the  best  teachers 
of  the  time,  when  it  was  the  custom  to  study  out  lessons 
and  not  ride  ponies. 

3d.  As  to  native  talent  and  personal  energy,  this  narra 
tive  will  show  that  Mr.  Sherman  has  scarcely  an  equal, 
and  no  superior.  He  has  been  tried  as  Roger  Sherman 
was,  and  as  Lincoln  was.  His  father  died  and  left  him 
poor,  his  only  inheritance  being  an  untarnished  name. 

There  is  a  species  of  art,  now  somewhat  in  vogue, 
called  repousse,  in  which  the  force  that  produces  the  raised 
figures  on  the  outside  is  exerted  from  within.  This  is  pre 
cisely  the  force  that  has  produced  such  characters  as  Roger 
Sherman,  Abraham  Lincoln,  Wilson,  Garfield,  and  John 
Sherman.  Witness  the  latter  sent  to  make  his  way  with 
strangers,  at  eight  years  of  age,  and  for  years  of  his  early 
youth  following  the  surveyor's  chain,  his  courage  in  defend 
ing  the  temperance  lecturer,  and,  when  business  was  slack, 
loading  a  barge  for  Cincinnati.  As  he  began  life  depend 
ing  on  himself,  so  he  continued,  as  this  whole  narrative 
will  show.  The  industry  and  success  of  the  man  in  the 
acquisition  of  knowledge  are  only  equaled  by  his  practical 
good  sense  in  applying  it. 

4th.  Not  only  in  regard  to  culture,  but  in  respect  to  the 
knowledge  acquired  and  retained, — knowledge  of  the  finances 
of  all  nations,  revenue  systems,  coinage,  diplomacy,  inter 
national  law,  etc.,  Mr.  Sherman  is  never  taken  aback. 


xii  INTRODUCTION. 

He  has  always  made  it  a  point  to  be  ready  on  every  meas 
ure  presented  for  action,  and  never  to  speak  nor  act  in  the 
dark. 

5th.  As  respects  having  opinions  of  his  own,  and  cour 
age  to  express  them,  the  question  never  has  been  asked. 
Opinions  is  not  the  word.  The  true  expression  is  convic 
tion*,  and  they  are  strong,  and  his  expression  of  them  bold. 
When  a  candidate  for  Congress  the  first  time,  a  young 
man  as  he  was,  he  was  asked  in  a  neighborhood  ef  aboli 
tionists  if  he  would  vote  for  the  abolition  of  slavery  in  the 
District  of  Columbia,  he  said  plainly,  No,  though  he  knew 
it  might  jeopardize  his  election.  When  shown  the  alleged 
Weber  letter,  he  was  asked  if  he  wrote  it.  At  first  he 
slightly  hesitated,  because  it  began  as  though  he  might 
possibly  have  written  it,  and  such  is  the  unflinching  cour 
age  of  the  man,  that  had  he  written  it  he  could  not  have 
disowned  it.  Many  instances  confirmatory  of  this  trait 
will  appear  in  the  following  sketch.  The  country  may  be 
assured  that  whatever  measure  Mr.  Sherman  thinks  best 
will  be  favored  by  him,  whether  it  be  avowed  by  Demo 
crats  or  Republicans.  The  present  National  Bank  system, 
engineered  by  him  through  Congress,  is  almost  identical 
with  that  suggested  by  President  Buchanan  in  1857. 

6th.  As  respects  Mr.  Sherman's  forecast  or  prescience, 
nothing  more  is  needed  to  satisfy  us  than  the  brief  history 
of  resumption  here  sketched,  and  the  quotations  made  from 
his  speeches  on  that  subject.  An  instance  showing  this 
came  under  the  writer's  own  knowledge.  Some  months 
before  the  late  Presidential  nomination  was  made  he  asked 
Mr.  Sherman,  then  Senator,  who  would  probably  be  the 
nominee?  Without  hesitation,  he. said  probably  Governor 
Hayes.  It  is  quite  evident  that  if  Mr.  Sherman  allows 
himself  to  be  nominated  he  will  be  elected. 


INTRODUCTION.  xiii 

7th.  In  magic  power  of  will,  Mr.  Sherman  may  almost 
be  said  to  rival  General  Jackson,  and  in  some  respects  to 
surpass  him.  The  following  was  Mr.  Corwin's  opinion  of 
Jackson.  Mr.  Cor  win  was  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
when  the  General  died.  A  man  came  into  the  office  one 
day,  and  asked  him  if  he  thought  General  Jackson  was  in 
heaven.  "  I  presume  he  is,"  said  he.  "  But  why  do  you 
think  so?"  "Because,"  said  he,  "the  General  would 
always  have  his  way."  So  Mr.  Sherman  will  have  his 
way.  Not  by  taking  the  "  responsibility"  and  forcing  it, 
but  by  patiently  waiting  to  accomplish  it  in  a  course  of 
obedience  to  law.  Mr.  Sherman's  whole  course  in  Con 
gress  showed  his  strong  faith,  that  when  the  people  of  this 
country  understand  what  is  right  and  best,  sooner  or  later 
they  will  do  it.  His  prescience  or  foresight  has  commonly, 
long  beforehand,  enabled  him  to  see  what  was  best,  his 
courage  led  him  to  urge  it,  however  unpopular,  and  his 
patience  was  such  that  he  could  wait  for  his  resources  of 
reason  and  fact  to  bring  it  about.  Mr.  Sherman  is  not  so 
stubborn  as  to  kick  against  the  people  uninstructed,  but 
will  stand  and  wTait  till  they  understand  him.  In  his  last 
report  he  has  recommended  the  taking  away  the  legal 
tender  quality  of  the  Greenbacks,  not  as  a  political  or 
party  move,  but  because  he  thought  it  lawful  and  right 
and  prudent  as  a  measure,  and  is  willing  now  to  wait  till 
the  people  realize  it. 

8th.  In  respect  of  loyalty  there  can  be  no  question.  If 
the  devotion  of  the  family  for  two  hundred  and  forty  years 
to  the  interests  of  this  nation,  through  King  Philip's  War, 
the  War  of  the  Revolution,  of  1812,  and  his  personal  efforts 
in  mustering  the  Sherman  Brigade,  and  the  offer  to  resign 
his  senatorial  honors  and  enter  the  army,  do  not  prove  his 
loyalty,  nothing  can. 


xiv  INTRODUCTION. 

9th.  Mr.  Sherman  has  been  long  enough  in  public  life 
to  become  acquainted  with  his  business — long  enough  for 
the  people  to  know  exactly  what  he  is  and  how  he  will 
conduct  the  Government  if  the  reins  are  put  in  his 
hands.  For  twenty-four  years  he  has  been  in  office,  and 
been  a  bold  and  fearless  leader,  and  in  all  that  time  his 
bitterest  foes — and  he  has  had  many — have  never  been  able 
to  throw  any  mud  and  make  it  stick.  In  times  like  these 
for  a  man  to  walk  the  tight-rope  of  American  politics  in 
sight  of  the  whole  people,  for  so  many  years,  and  never 
stumble  nor  trip,  demonstrates  that  he  can  be  safely  trusted 
with  the  reins  of  Government  for  at  least  four  years. 

But  safety  is  not  all.  If  John  Sherman  is  made  Presi 
dent,  the  nation  may  rest  assured  that  the  White  House 
will  be  occupied  by  no  starched-up,  high-feeling  aristocrat, 
but  by  a  party  who  will  be  ready  to  treat  all  ai^e,  with 
due  consideration  and  respect,  and  there  will  be  hearts  to 
sympathize  with  the  humblest  sufferer.  No  man,  it  is 
said,  has  ever  administered  the  Treasury  with  more  cour 
tesy  and  affability  and  kindness  to  those  under  him  than 
John  Sherman.  A  man  who  thus  makes  himself  agree 
able  to  twelve  thousand  employes  under  him,  may  reason 
ably  be  expected  to  do  so  to  the  whole  nation  if  it  shall 
come  under  his  administrative  care. 


HOK 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE   SHERMAN   FAMILY. 

THERE  may  be  many  advantages  arising  from  an  ances 
try  distinguished  by  merit,  or  eminent  moral  and  intellect 
ual  attainments.  It  is  a  well-established  maxim  that 
"blood  will  tell."  Heredity  is  always  regarded  as  impor 
tant,  and,  in  truth,  great  stress  is  universally  laid  upon 
it.  Traits  of  character,  tastes,  dispositions,  habits,  culture, 
mental  and  physical,  that  are  strongly  marked  in  one  gen 
eration  are  likely  to  leave  their  impress  upon  the  next,  and 
often  reappear  with  even  greater  distinctness  in  the  third 
and  fourth  generation.  This  truth  should  be  strongly  im 
pressed  upon  the  mind  of  every  head  of  a  family,  that  all 
he  is,  for  good  or  for  evil,  may  reappear  in,  and  exert  its 
force  upon,  the  third  or  fourth  generation. 

A  brief  review  of  the  history  of  the  Sherman  family 
may  afford  some  indication  of  the  source  of  that  self-gov 
erning  power  of  will,  that  has  guided  the  Honorable  Secre 
tary  so  securely  for  twenty-four  years  of  public  life,  in  the 
stormiest  period  of  this  Republic,  and  carried  him  on,  in 
spite  of  the  strongest  opposition  of  both  friend  and  foe,  to 
an  achievement  that  has  given  him  a  world-wide  fame. 

"The  name  of  Sherman  is  by  no  means  a  common  one 

•     '  (15) 


1C  HOX.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

in  England,"  says  Hollister  in  his  History  of  Connecticut, 
"though  it  has  been  highly  respected  and  honored."  Sir 
Hepyy'Sherrgefi « was  one  of  the  executors  of  the  will  of 
Lorel  'Stanley,  Earl  df*T)erby,  County  of  Lancaster,  dated 
iiM^May.j'l^l.  ;  "\yjllijmi  Sherman  purchased  Knight- 
cSfcoii  in,tji&.tfmc  t>CJSs^41V*y^^-  A  monument  to  William 
Sherman  is  in  Ottery,  St.  Mary,  1542.  John  Sherman 
and  his  son  both  died  in  the  same  place  in  1617.  "37ie 
Shermans  of  Laxley,  (from  Davy's  manuscript  collections 
relating  to  the  county  of  Suffolk  (England),  deposited  in 
the  British  Museum), -Thomas  Sherman  (1st),  of  Laxley; 
2.  Thomas  Sherman  (2d),  of  Laxley;  3.  Thomas  Sher 
man  (3d),  gentleman,  of  Laxley  and  Stutson,  afterwards 
of  Ipswich;  4.  John  Sherman,  son  of  Thomas  Sherman 
(2d)  ;  5.  William  Sherman,  eldest  son  of  John,  married 
Mary  Lascelles,  of  Nottinghamshire.  He  was  aged  thirty- 
one  years  in  1619.  His  son  John  came  to  America  in 
1634,  and  settled  in  Watertown,  Massachusetts,  near  his 
cousin  of  the  same  name,  from  whom  he  is  distinguished 
in  history  as  Captain  John  Sherman."  This  Captain  John 
Sherman  was  the  ancestor  of  Roger  Sherman,  the  signer 
of  the  Declaration  of  Independence.  Of  him  Hollister 
speaks  (vol.  ii,  p.  438)  as  follows:  * 

"Sherman  (Roger)  was  of  a  grave  and  massive  under- 
derstanding ;  a  man  who  looked  at  the  most  difficult  ques 
tions,  and  untied  their  tangled  knots,  without  having  his 
vision  dimmed,  or  his  head  made  dizzy.  He  appears  to 
have  known  the  science  of  government,  and  the  relations 
of  society  from  his  childhood,  and  to  have  needed  no  teach- 

*  It  is  quoted  here  because  there  seems  to  be  so  great  a  sem 
blance  between  the  character,  moral  and  intellectual,  of  Roger 
Sherman,  as  drawn  here  by  the  historian,  and  that  of  our  present 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 


i.]  .     THE  SHERMAN   FAMILY.  n 

ing,  because  he  saw  moral,  ethical  and  poetical  truths  in 
all  their  relations,  better  than  they  could  be  imparted  to 
him  by  others.  He  took  for  granted,  as  self-evident,  the 
maxims  that  had  made  Plato  prematurely  old,  and  had 
consumed  the  best  hours  of  Bacon  and  Sir- Thomas  More, 
in  attempting  to  elaborate  and  reconcile  the  inconsistencies 
of  the  British  Constitution. 

"With  more  well-digested  thoughts  to  communicate  than 
any  other  member  of  the  Convention,"  (to  adopt  the  Con 
stitution  of  the  United  States),  "he  used  fewer  words  to 
express  his  sentiments  than  any  of  his  compeers.  His 
views,  uttered  in  a  plain,  though  didactic  form,  seemed  to 
be  so  presented,  in  a  course  of  reasoning,  as  to  be  an  em 
bodiment  of  reason  itself. 

"  With  a  broad-based  consciousness,  extended  as  the  line 
of  the  horizon,  where  calm  philosophy  and  wild  theory 
meet  and  seem  to  run  into  each  other,  he  saw  at  a  glance 
the  most  abstruse  subjects  presented  to  his  consideration, 
and  fused  them  down,  as  if  by  the  heat  of  a  furnace,  into 
globes  of  solid  maxims,  and  demonstrable  propositions. 
Nor  did  he,  look  merely  at  the  present  hour,  but  with  a 
sympathy  as  lively  as  his  ken  was  far-reaching,  he  pene 
trated  the  curtains  that  hid  future  generations  from  the 
sight  of  common  men,  and  made  as  careful  provision  for 
the  unborn  millions  of  his  countrymen,  as  for  the  genera 
tion  that  was  then  upon  the  stage  of  life. 

"These  traits  of  character  belonged  to  the  Shermans  by 
the  double  tenure  of  inheritance  and  the  endowments  of 
nature.  He  was  descended  from  the  Shermans  of  Laxley, 
in  the  County  of  .Suffolk,  England,  as  well  as  from  the 
Wallers,  the  Laxleys,  and  other  families  in  the  maternal 
line,  belonging  to  the  solid  landed  gentry,  who  had  helped 

to  frame  the  British  Constitution.     Three  members  of  the 
2 


18  HOX.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

Sherman  family  emigrated  to  America  in  1634.  Two  of 
them,  Samuel  Sherman  "  (the  ancestor  of  Secretary  Sher 
man),  "  who  soon  removed  to  the  valley  of  the  Connecticut, 
and  was  one  of  the  strongest  pillars  of  the  colony ;  and  the 
Rev.  John  Sherman,  who  was  famous  throughout  New 
England  as  the  best  mathematician  and  astronomer  in  the 
colony,  and  one  of  the  most  eloquent  preachers  of  that  day, 
were  brothers,  and  are  not  unknown  to  fame." 

The  mental  characteristics  of  Secretary  Sherman,  being 

so  like  those  of  Roger  Sherman,   as  it  is  believed  these 

pages    will    render   apparent,    it    will    be    of   interest    to 

»  witness    the    like    schools    in    which    both    have    been 

trained. 

Roger  Sherman  was  a  grandson  of  Captain  John  Sher 
man,  first  cousin  of  the  above,  and  inherited  the  best  traits 
of  the  family.  "  But  good  lineage  and  intellectual  powers 
of  a  high  order,  were  not  adequate  of  themselves  to  form 
such  a  character  as  Sherman's.  It  was  to  be  tried  in  the 
school  of  poverty,  and  to  buffet  the  waves  of  adversity,  be 
fore  it  could  gain  nerve  and  strength  enough  to  baffle  the 
sophistries  of  the  British  ministry,  defy  the  sword  of  a 
tyrant,  or  successfully  oppose  itself  to  the  headlong  flood 
of  popular  passion."—  (Hollister's  Hist.  Conn.,  vol.  ii,  p. 
439.) 

The  first  mention  made  of  that  branch  of  the  Sherman 
family  from  which  our  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  is  de 
scended,  by  Cothren,  in  his  History  of  Ancient  Woodbury,  is 
in  the  following  words : 

"The  court  grants  Mr.  Samuel  Sherman,  Lieutenant 
Wm.  Curtice,  Ensign  Joseph  Judson,  and  John  Minor, 
themselves  and  associates,  liberty  to  erect  a  plantation  at 
Pomperouge;  provided  it  doth  not  prejudice  any  former 
grant  to  any  other  plantation  or  particular  person  ;  pro- 


i.]  THE  SHERMAN  FAMILY.  ]«> 

vided  any  other  honest  inhabitants  of  Stratford  have  lib 
erty  to  joyne  with  them  in  setleing  there,  and  that  they  en- 
terteine  so  many  inhabitants  as  the  place  will  conveniently 
enterteine,  and  that  they  setle  there  within  the  space  of 
three  years." 

"  In  October,  1675,  Wm.  Curtiss  was  appointed  by  the 
General  Court  captain  of  sixty  men,  to  be  raised  in  Fair- 
field  County,  to  serve  in  King  Philip's  war,  with  power  to 
appoint  his  inferior  officers.  In  May,  1676,  when  the  peo 
ple  of  Woodbury  were  at  Stratford,  on  account  of  this  war, 
he  and  Mr.  Samuel  Sherman  were  appointed  Commission 
ers  for  Stratford  and  Woodbury.  Intimately  associated 
with  Captain  Curtiss  in  all  that  related  to  the  welfare  of 
the  new  town,  was  the  Hon.  Samuel  Sherman.  He  was, 
at  the  date  of  its  settlement,  undoubtedly  the  most  distin 
guished  man  connected  with  the  enterprise.  He  was  from 
Dedham,  Essex  County,  England.  He  came  to  this  coun 
try  in  1634,  and,  previous  to  the  date  of  the  new  planta 
tion,  had  been  a  leading  man  in  the  colony.  He  had 
assisted  in  the  settlement  of  several  other  towns  in  the 
colony,  and  now  undertook  the  same  for  Woodbury." 
(H-istwy  of  Woodbury,  vol.  i,  pp.  60,  61.)  He  died  pre 
vious  to  1684,  our  Secretary  being  the  seventh  in  the 
line  of  direct  descent  from  him.  His  son,  the  Hon. 
John  Sherman,  Mras  one  of  the  first  company  (in  the  settle 
ment  of  Woodbury),  and  his  fame  is  more  particularly  the 
property  of  the  town  than  the  others.  He  was  distin 
guished  not  only  in  the  town,  but  also  in  the  colony.  He 
wns  a  justice  of  the  quorum,  or  Associate  County  Court 
Judge,  for  forty-four  years,  from  1684,  a  representative  of  the 
town  seventeen  sessions,  and  Speaker  of  the  Lower  House 
in  May  and  October,  1711,  and  in  May  and  October,  17 \'2. 
He  was  Town  Clerk  twenty-five  years,  and  first  Judge  of 


20  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

Probate  for  the  district  of  Wood  bury  from  its  organization, 
1719,  for  nine  years." 

To  show  that  our  Shermans  inherit  something  besides 
Sherman  blood,  a  word  or  two  may  be  recorded  of  the  Rev. 
Anthony  Stoddard,  who  is  an  ancestor  of  our  Ohio-  Sher 
mans.  Says  Cothren,  vol.  i,  p.  79  : 

"  During  the  continuance  of  this"  (French  and  Indian) 
"  war,  it  is  related  that  one  Sabbath  evening,  after  the 
conclusion  of  the  services  at  church,  while  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Stoddard  was  walking  in  his  garden,  near  the  Cranberry 
Pond,  he  discovered  an  Indian  skulking  among  the  sur 
rounding  trees  and  bushes.  Apparently  without  noticing 
the  movements  of  the  Indian,  he  contrived  to  re-enter  his 
house  and  obtain  his  gun.  After  playing  the  same  game 
of  skulking  with  his  adversary  for  awhile,  Mr.  Stoddard 
got  a  fair  view  of  him,  discharged  his  piece,  and  he  fell 
among  the  bushes.  He  dared  not  investigate  further  that 
night,  but,  having  quietly  given  the  alarm,  the  inhab 
itants  sought  their  palisaded  houses  for  the  night.  Early 
in  the  morning  he  discovered  another  red  foe  in  the  vicin 
ity  of  his  companion,  whom  he  also  laid  low  with  his 
musket." 

On  November  17,  1774,  it  appears  that  a  town  meeting 
was  held,  of  which  Daniel  Sherman,  the  great  grandfather 
of  the  Ohio  Shermans,  was  moderator,  to  take  into  consid 
eration  measures  for  carrying  into  effect  the  "Resolves  of 
the  late  General  Congress,"  and  of  the  House  of  Rep 
resentatives  of  Connecticut,  one  of  which  wras  to  have  no 
dealings  with  the  "  foes  to  ye  Rights  of  British  America." 

"At  a  legal  meeting  of  the  freemen  of  the  town  of 
Woodbury,  September  the  19th,  1775,  Gideon  Stoddard 
and  Daniel  Sherman  were  put  at  the  head  of  a  '  Commit 
tee  of  Inspection,'  numbering  thirty,  who  held  their  office 


i.]  THE  SHERMAN  FAMILY.  21 

during  the  war  of  the  Revolution.  In  the  year  1781,  Gen 
eral  Lafayette,  with  his  chief  officers,  lodged  at  the  house 
of  Daniel  Sherman.  They  were  on  their  way  to  join  Gen 
eral  Washington  in  his  operations  against  Cornwallis." 

"At  a  legal  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of* the  town  of 
Woodbury,  April  3,  1777,  Daniel  Sherman,  Esq.,  was 
chosen  moderator.  Voted  that  the  selectmen  in  this 
town,  for  the  time  being,  be  a  committee,  as  is  speci 
fied  in  the  Resolve  issued  by  his  honor  the  Governor  and 
Committee  of  Safety,  dated  March  the  18th,  1777,  to  take 
care  of  such  soldiers'  Famelys  as  shall  Inlist  into  the  Conti 
nental  army." 

' '  It  will  be  seen  that  this  order  was  given  by  the  Gov 
ernor,  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  '  Council  of 
Safety.'  This  council  was  appointed  annually  by  the 
Assembly,  and  was  composed  of  from  nine  to  fourteen  of 
the  most  distinguished  men  in  the  State,  whose  duty  it  was  to 
assist  the  Governor  when  the  Assembly  was  not  in  session." 

In  cases  where  necessity  and  safety  required  immediate 
action,  or  on  small  matters,  the  Governor,  at  his  discretion, 
was  authorized  to  convene  a  part  of  said  council,  not  less 
than  five,  to  act  with  him.  The  per  diem  allowance  to 
each  of  the  council  for  this  service,  including  their  ex 
penses,  was  settled  at  eight  shillings.  Woodbury  was  for 
four  years,  from  May,  1777,  represented  in  this  council  by 
Daniel  Sherman.  Another  member  of  the  council  was 
Roger  Sherman. 

"  Daniel  Sherman  was  perhaps  the  most  distinguished 
man  that  had  arisen  in  the  town  to  his  day, "'says  Cothren, 
vol.  i,  p.  190.  "  He  was  a  descendant  of  Samuel  Sher 
man,  of  Stratford,  was  a  justice  of  the  quorum  for  twen 
ty-five  years,  and  Judge  of  the  Litchfield  County  Court 
five  years,  from  1780.  For  sixteen  years  he  was  Probate 


22  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAR 

Clerk  for  the  district  of  Woodbury,  and  judge  of  that  dis 
trict  thirty-seven  years.  He  represented  his  native  town 
in  the  General  Assembly  sixty- five  sessions.  This  was  by 
far  the  longest  period  of  time  any  one  has  ever  represented 
the  town.  He  was  of  commanding  powers  of  mind,  of 
sterling  integrity,  and  every  way  qualified  for  the  various 
public  trusts  confided  to  his  care.  His  son,  Taylor  Sher 
man,  the  fifth  from  Samuel,  was  married,  in  1787,  to  Eliz 
abeth  Stoddard,  the  great  grand-daughter  of  the  parson 
who  shot  one  Indian  after  church  on  Sunday  and  another 
before  breakfast  the  next  morning.  He  lived  and  died  as 
a  lawyer  and  a  judge  in  Norwalk,  Connecticut.  He  was 
one  of  those  who  went  West  to  arrange  a  treaty  with  the 
Indians  in  1808,  and  the  same  year  came  to  Ohio  again  to 
make  a  partition  of  the  Firelands.  He  died  in  May,  1815, 
and  his  widow  came  to  Ohio,  and  died  in  Mansfield, 
in  1848." 

As  the  Shermans  have  been  more  or  less  interlaced  with 
the  Stoddards  from  very  early  times  in  the  history  of 
Woodbury,  and  as  some  of  the  marked  characteristics 
of  Secretary  Sherman  seem  to  have  been  derived  from 
that  source,  it  will  be  proper  to  give  something  of  a  sketch 
of  that  remarkable  family.  Anthony  Stoddard  emigrated 
from  the  west  of  England,  and  came  to  Boston  about  1 639. 
He  married  first,  Mary,  daughter  of  Hon.  Samuel  Down 
ing,  of  Salem,  and  sister  of  Sir  George,  afterward  Lord 
George  Downing.  Solomon,  cne  of  his  sons,  graduated 
at  Harvard  in  1662,  and  settled  as  minister  at  Northamp 
ton,  Massachusetts,  1672.  Anthony,  a  son  of  the  latter, 
graduated  at  Harvard,  1697,  and  settled  at  Woodbury, 
and  for  his  first  wife  married  Prudence  Wells,  and  for  his 
second  wife  Mary  Sherman.  His  grandson,  Israel,  by  his 
first  wife,  married  Elizabeth  Reade;  and  their  daughter 


i.]  THE  SHERMAN   FAMILY.  u:j 

Elizabeth  married  Hon.  Taylor  Sherman,  who  \vas  the 
grandson  of  the  Hon.  Daniel  Sherman,  of  Woodbury,  and 
the  grandfather  of  Secretary  Sherman.  The  Rev.  Anthony 
Stoddard  was  for  sixty  years  pastor  of  the  first  church  at 
Woodbury.  He  was,  at  the  same  time,  not  only  a  faithful 
and  very  successful  minister  of  the  Gospel,  but  a  well 
educated  physician  and  lawyer.  He  was  Clerk  of  Probate 
for  the  district  of  Woodbury  for  a  period  of  forty  years. 
His  intellect  and  acquirements  were  of  a  high  order.  (His- 
tory  of  Woodbury,  pp.  140-141.) 

The  Stoddards  and  the  Shermans  were  rigid  Presbyteri 
ans.  So  remarkably  firm  was  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Stoddard 
Sherman  in  that  faith  that  she  would  go  nowhere  else  to 
church.  One  of  her  grandchildren  says:  "She  always 
made  us  stand  around.  Her  will  was  law.  I  could  coax 
mother  to  let  me  do  as  I  pleased,  but  never  grandmother." 

The  Hon.  Charles  R.  Sherman,  son  of  the  above,  a  man 
of  no  less  note  than  his  more  remote  ancestors,  lived  in 
Norwalk,  Connecticut,  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1810, 
and  married  Mary  Hoyt,  This  was  a  union  in  every  way- 
worthy  of  both.  The  Hoyts  were  a  numerous  family  in 
Nor  walk,  and  among  the  early  settlers.  Many  of  them 
engaged  in  commercial  pursuits. 

During  the  Presidency  of  Mr.  Monroe,  Mr.  Sherman  was 
made  Collector  of  Internal  Revenue.  Two  of  his  deputies, 
being  defaulters,  involved  him  in  financial  embarrassment, 
from  which  he  never  recovered.  This  was  the  providential 
turn  in  affairs  that  threw  his  family  upon  their  own  re 
sources,  and  made  it  necessary  for  John  Sherman,  of  Ohio, 
to  be  trained  in  a  school  similar  to  that  of  his  relative, 
Roger  Sherman. 

"In  1811,  C.  R.  Sherman  and  his  wife  started  for  Ohio, 
traveling  on  horseback,  carrying  their  infant  child  upon  a 


24  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAX.  [CHAP. 

pillow,  alternately,  before  them.  Being  established  per 
manently  in  Lancaster,  he  rose-  rapidly  Lo  eminence  as  a 
polished  and  eloquent  advocate,  and  as  a  judicious  and  re 
liable  counselor  at  law.  Indeed,  in  the  elements  of  mind 
necessary  to  build  up  and  sustain  such  a  reputation,  few 
men  were  his  equal,  and  fewer  still  his  superior  in  the 
State  of  Ohio,  or  out  of  it.  But  it  was  not  only  in  the 
higher  region  of  legal  attainment  that  he  gained  superi 
ority;  his  mind  was  enriched  with  choice  classical  culti 
vation." — (Hon.  C.  R.  Sherman's  Life,  p.  4.) 

As  we  have  had,  among  Mr.  Sherman's  ancestry,  a 
person  who  came  down  from  the  pulpit  and  shot  an  Indian, 
so  also  have  we  a  judge,  who  came  down  from  the  bench  and 
preached  -a  sermon.  When  failing  one  Saturday  night  to 
reach  the  place  of  holding  the  court  on  Monday,  in  com 
pany  with  several  prominent  lawyers  of  Lancaster,  they 
resolved,  out  of  regard  to  the  sacred  day  of  rest,  to  remain 
at  a  small  town  over  the  Lord's  day.  As  there  was  no 
minister  of  the  Gospel  there,  Judge  Sherman  was  pitched 
upon  to  hold  service  and  preach,  which  he  did  to  general 
acceptance.  (Sherman's  Life,  p.  6.) 

A  favorite  anecdote  of  Judge  Sherman,  the  sentiment 
of  which  indicates  the  character  of  our  Secretary,  as  well 
as  of  his  father,  was  the  following  Irish  bull,  uttered  by 
Sir  Boyle  Rouch  in  the  Irish  parliament:  "Mr.  Speaker, 
the  experience  of  my  whole  life  has  convinced  me  that 
the  only  safe  way  to  escape  from  danger  is  to  meet  it 
plump  in  the  face."  The  motto  on  the  Sherman  coat-of- 
arms  is  suggestive:  "  Conquer  death  by  virtue."  At  the  age 
of  thirty-five,  when  Mr.  Sherman  was  only  fairly  launched 
upon  a  successful  legal  practice,  before  accumulating  more 
than  barely  enough  to  pay  the  expenses  of  settling  in  a 
new  country,  he  was  complimented  by  the  Legislature  of 


I.]  THE  SHERMAN  FAMILY.  25 

Ohio  with  the  appointment  of  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court. 
True,  it  was  complimentary,  but  it  was  little  else.  The 
salary  of  a  Judge  in  Ohio,  at  that  time,  was  scarcely 
enough  to  support  a  single  man,  to  say  nothing  of  a  wife 
and  a  rapidly  increasing  family.  But  as  the  Shermans 
for  five  generations  had  mostly  held  judicial  positions,  and 
as  that  appointment  might  lay  the  foundation  of  a  future 
and  more  extended  legal  practice,  he  accepted  with  reason 
able  grounds  for  bright  hopes  in  the  future.  Those  hopes 
were  blighted.  While  on  the  bench  at  Lebanon,  he  was 
taken  suddenly  ill,  and  died  on  the  24th  of  June,  1829, 
being  in  his  forty-first  year.  His  widow  was  now  left  with 
limited  means,  and  an  abundant  family,  eleven  children, 
the  eldest  eighteen  years  of  age,  and  the  youngest  six 
weeks.  To  the  rearing  of  these  she  addressed  herself,  with 
such  care  and  patience  and  prayer,  as  can  spring  only  from 
a  pious  mother's  love.  Sustained  by  Him  who  watches 
over  the  widow  and  the  fatherless,  she  was  blessed  with 
remarkable  success.  From  a  regard  to  the  future  good  of 
her  family,  she  made  a  sacrifice  of  her  own  maternal  feel 
ings.  Mrs.  Sherman  permitted  one  or -two  of  her  children 
to  be  taken  into  the  family  of  an  aunt,  one  into  that  of 
the  Hon.  Thomas  Ewing,  afterwards  to  become  Gen 
eral  W.  T.  Sherman,  and  John,  into  that  of  his  cousin, 
John  Sherman,  a  merchant  of  Mt.  Vernon,  Ohio,  where  it 
was  expected  he  would  be  educated  and  trained  to  busi 
ness. 

The  Hoyts,  of  Nprwalk,  Connecticut,  were  mostly  Epis 
copalians,  as  the  Shermans  and  Stoddards  were  Presby 
terians.  But  on  coming  west,  and  finding  no  church  of 
her  choice  at  Lancaster,  Mrs.  Sherman  attached  herself  to 
the  Presbyterian  Church.  When,  however,  she  had  an  op 
portunity,  she  returned  to  the  Episcopal  Church,  and 
3  * 


26  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP.  I. 

continued  a  devout  member,  till  her  decease  in  1852,  four 
years  after  that  of  her  mother-in-law. 

Mrs.  Sherman  was  known  to  the  writer  as  a  woman  of 
quiet,  unobtrusive  piety,  courtly  and  affable  in  manner, 
calm  and  even  in  temper,  and  of  a  particularly  command 
ing  presence.  Her  very  look  seemed  to  say,  My  authority 
must  be  respected.  One  that  knew  her  could  judge  some 
thing  of  the  source  whence  the  Secretary  derived  the  firm 
ness  and  caution  that  have  carried  him  so  successfully 
through  a  long  career  in  the  stormiest  period  of  this  Re 
public,  and  all  the  time  in  the  front  rank  of  the  conflict. 


CHAPTER  II. 

PERSONAL   HISTORY. 

JOHN  SHERMAN,  the  present  distinguished  Secretary  of 
the  Treasury,  was  born  in  Lancaster,  Fail-field  County, 
Ohio,  on  the  tenth  of  May,  1823,  being  the  eighth  child, 
the  seventh  born  in  Ohio.  He  was  six  years  of  age  at  the 
time  of  his  father's  death,  and  remained  two  years — only 
two  years  longer — under  his  mother's  careful  training. 
What  that  culture  was,  the  writer  has  no  other  means  of 
learning  than  what  he  can  infer  from  the  well  known  ten 
derness  and  devotion  of  a  consistently  pious  mother,  and 
the  instruction  for  little  children  enjoined  by  the  church  to 
which  she  belonged.  As  she  was  in  heart  and  life,  it  was 
doubtless  her  aim  to  cause  her  little  ones  to  be.  We  may 
well  conceive  that  she  took  her  church  catechism,  called 
them  around  her,  and  asked,  "What  is  thy  duty  towards 
thy  neighbor?"  She  prompting  them,  they  answer,  "My 
duty  towards  my  neighbor  is  to  love  him  as  myself,  and  to 
do  to  all  men  as  I  would  they  should  do  unto  me,"  etc. 
Under  instructions  like  this,  we  may,  from  the  results,  be 
lieve  the  child  to  have  been  reared  during  the  first  eight 
years  of  his  life,  the  most  important  of  all  in  the  formation 
of  character. 

At  the  age  of  eight  years,  as  before  stated,  his  father's 
cousin,  Mr.  John  Sherman,  a  merchant  of  Mt.  Vernon, 
Ohio,  a  man  highly  respected  in  the  community,  having 

(27) 


28 


HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

been  under  some  pecuniary  obligations  to  Judge  Sherman, 
and  fancying  the  boy  because  he  bore  his  own  name,  begged 
permission  of  the  widowed  mother  to  take  the  child  home, 
and  treat  him  as  his  own.  Then,  at  that  early  age,  he 
bade  adieu  to  his  mother's  care  and  tender  caresses,  and, 
as  it  proved,  went  forth  to  battle  with  the  world  for  him 
self.  Mr.  Sherman  did  all  for  him  that  a  man  could  do, 
but  the  want  of  a  mother's  expressions  of  affection  must 
have  been  sadly  missed,  as  there  was  no  one  to  lean  on 
who  could  supply  her  place.  But  the  precocious  intelli 
gence  of  the  little  boy  doubtless  prevented  him  from  feel- 
ing  it  as  another  might  have  done.  Still  it  gave  a  turn 
and  tone  to  his  whole  life. 

Mr.  Sherman  remained  in  Mt.  Vernon  four  years.  At 
that  time  there  were  some  thorough  teachers  in  that  place, 
such  as  Mitchell  Miller  and  others,  whose  schools  he  at 
tended.  The  whole  four  years  found  him  regularly  at 
school,  and  his  progress  was  such  as  to  justify  the  most 
sanguine  expectations  as  to  his  future.  It  was  certainly 
very  remarkable,  being  at  the  age  of  twelve  years,  far  ad- 
vaneed  in  Latin  and  mathematics.  This  was  unusual  pro 
ficiency  for  one  so  young  and  so  circumstanced.  It  showed 
that  lie  had  an  inherent  taste  for  learning,  that  it  came 
easy  and  was  well  treasured  up. 

Of  this  period,  Mr.  Sherman  writes  to  a  friend  thus: 
"The  four  years  spent  by  me  in  Mt.  Vernon  I  regard  as 
the  foundation  training  of  my  after  life.  Though  the 
circumstances  of  my  life  were  not  very  pleasant,  being 
away  from  home,  yet  the  schools  were  very  good,  and,  as 
you  remember,  we  had  some  very  good  masters,  as  we 
called  them,  among  the  rest  Matthew  Mitchell.  The 
hard,  severe  training,  both  at  school  and  at  home,  I  always 


IT.]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  1>9 

thought   gave   tone    to  my   temper  and  character,  and  I 
would  be  glad  to  acknowledge  that  much." 

From  there  he  was  taken  by  his  sister,  and  placed  in  one 
of  the  best  conducted  select  schools  in  tlie  then  West — that 
of  Samuel  C.  Howe,  at  Lancaster.  The  writer  often  at 
tended  the  monthly  examinations  in  Mr.  Howe's  school, 
and  found  the  training  of  the  pupils  rigid  and  thorough. 
Among  those  educated  at  that  time  are  several  men  of 
prominence.  Years  afterwards  that  faithful  teacher  re 
turned  to  Lancaster,  and  pointed  to  these  as  "his  boys." 
"John  continued  there,"  his  sister  writes,  "till  his  fifteenth 
3^ear."  "This  school,"  Mr.  Sherman  himself  says,  "was 
the  best  I  ever  attended,  and  when  I  left  it  in  the  spring  or 
summer  of  1837,  I  was  reasonably  prepared  to  enter  the 
Sophomore  Class  in  college.  It  was  at  this  time  that  I 
hoped  and  anxiously  wished  to  go  to  Gambler,  but  no 
member  of  the  family  seemed  to  be  in  a  condition  to  ad 
vance  the  necessary  expenses." 

Then  to  help  himself,  and  relieve  his  mother  of  a  part 
of  her  heavy  burden,  he  looked  about  for  some  employ 
ment.  The  appointment  of  junior  rodman,  on  the  Muskin- 
gum  improvement,  seemed  to  be  the  most  available,  and 
was  eagerly  accepted  by  him.  He  spent  two  years  on  that 
improvement,  which  service,  as  to  the  practical  affairs  of 
life,  was  doubtless  the  best  part  of  his  early  training.  He 
was  much  in  the  open  air,  exceedingly  important  to  health 
and  strength,  just  as  the  physical  system  was  being  de 
veloped,  and  in  contact  with  all  sorts  of  people,  some  of 
them  rough  and  lawless.  He  learned  to  take  care  of  him 
self,  and  from  that  time  to  this  has  been  dependent  on  him 
self,  and  has  received  no  aid  that  has  not  been  repaid  with 
interest. 

One  circumstance  of  no  little  interest,  as  betokening  the 


30  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

courage  and  authority  of  the  future  man,  should  not  be 
passed  by.  This,  be  it  remembered,  was  in  the  early  days 
of  the  temperance  reform,  when  it  required  courage  in  its 
advocates.  At  this  time  a  temperance  lecturer  appeared 
among  the  laborers,  on  the  slack-water  improvement. 
John  Sherman  was  the  only  one  to  sustain  the  agent, 
which  he  did  with  a  speech.  While  the  lecturer  was 
seriously  threatened  with  a  mob,  none  ventured  to  re 
proach  our  young  engineer.  There  appears,  even  then,  to 
have  been  a  vein  of  candor,  frankness  and  sincerity  in  his 
manner  that  commanded  the  respect  even  of  opponents. 

In  the  winter  of  1838-9,  having  but  little  to  do  on  the 
improvement,  and  as  it  was  not  in  him  to  be  idle,  pay  or 
no  pay,  he  embarked  in  a  salt  speculation,  of  which  Mr. 
McComb,  his  brother-in-law,  as  long  as  he  lived,  used 
jokingly  to  remind  him.  He  undertook,  though  not  six 
teen  years  of  age,  to  carry  salt  from  the  Muskingum  River 
to  Cincinnati,  prompted  partly  by  the  hope  of  gain,  but 
mainly  desiring  to  see  a  city.  He  failed  to  make  any 
money,  through  a  severe  frost,  which  detained  his  loaded 
barges  on  the  Muskingum  River  until  too  late  in  the  season 
to  realize  profit.  Still  he  had  his  trip  to  Cincinnati,  vis 
ited  his  brother  Lampson,  in  the  family  of  Mr.  Hammond, 
gained  some  experience  of  the  world,  was  doing  something, 
and  for  the  first  time  saw  a  town  of  any  magnitude. 

During  his  stay  on  the  Muskingum  Improvement  he  was 
much  indebted  to  General  Curtiss,  or  Colonel  Curtiss  as  he 
was  then  called,  who  knew  the  family,  and  treated  him  as 
a  son,  and  after  a  few  months  put  him  in  charge  of  the 
work  at  Beverly,  where  he  remained  during  most  of  his 
stay  on  the  improvement. 

While  there  he  still  ardently  cherished  the  hope  of  yet 
going  to  college,  and  at  times  studied  very  hard.  By  the 


ii.]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  81 

mutations  in  politics,  the  Whigs  went  out,  and  the  Demo 
crats  came  in,  Col.  Curtiss  was  removed,  and  shortly  after, 
most  of  the  corps  were  dismissed  for  political  reasons. 

In  the  summer  of  1839  he  was  again  adrift,  and  re 
turned  to  Lancaster,  where  he  spent  the  following  winter, 
again  preparing  for  college. 

In  the  spring  of  1840,  his  brother,  the  late  Hon.  C.  T. 
Sherman,  being  then  in  a  good  practice  at  Mansfield,  in 
vited  John  to  come  and  help  him  in  his  law  office,  w^hile 
preparing  for  college.  He  did  this  with  reluctance,  for  he 
had  other  plans  in  view ;  but  he  went,  being  guided  by  a 
wisdom  higher  than  his  own,  and  has  had  no  cause  to  regret 
the  move.  Here  he  was  so  highly  favored  as  to  be  near 
his  uncle,  Judge  Parker,  and  for  eight  years  to  be  some 
what  iwader  the  eye  and  influence  of  that  firm  and  unbend 
ing  grandmother,  who  resided  with  her  son-in-law,  the 
Judge. 

Judge  Parker  was  a  man  of  leisure,  and  some  fortune, 
and  took  a  great  interest  in  his  nephew.  This  is  not  un 
natural  after  finding  out  his  indefatigable  industry,  and  his 
facility  in  acquiring  knowledge.  He  took  great  interest  in 
examining  him,  and  in  directing  his  studies,  being  a  man 
of  great  learning,  an  able  lawyer,  and  a  fine  classical 
scholar.  Judge  Parker,  after  finding  out  what  he  was,  and 
how  far  he  had  proceeded  in  his  studies,  advised  him  to  de 
vote  his  four  years  to  the  study  of  law,  instead  of  dividing 
the  time  between  college  and  law.  The  Judge  took  the 
general  oversight  and  direction  of  the  youth's  studies,  as 
his  brother  was  very  much  occupied  with  the  business  of 
the  office.  John  went  at  once  to  the  study  of  Blackstone, 
Kent,  and  other  old  authors,  on  land  tenures.  The  Judge 
continued  to  insist  that  his  time  was  better  spent  in  pre 
paring  for  the  law  than  it  would  be  in  spending  a  part  of 


32  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CII.VP. 

it  in  college.  A  man  of  Judge  Parker's  sound  views  would 
not  have  so  advised,  unless  he  had  seen  that  his  nephew 
was  so  fur  advanced  in  mental  culture,  that  it  would  have 
been  nearly  a  waste  of  time  for  him  to  follow7  the  curricu' 
him  of  a  college.  The  writer  of  this  will  venture  to  say 
that  even  now,  Mr.  Sherman  would  in  a  summer's  vaca 
tion,  if  need  be,  fit  himself  to  do  credit  to  almost  any  de 
partment  of  learning. 

The  truth  is,  Mr.  Sherman,  with  his  four  years'  study, 
and  not  a  little  practice  meanwhile,  was  unusually  well 
prepared  for  admission  to  the  bar.  Gradually  as  his 
brother's  business  increased,  he  took  charge  of  lighter 
cases,  tried  several  before  justices  of  the  peace,  and  pre 
pared  all  the  pleadings,  then  conducted  in  the  old-fashioned 
form,  so  that  long  before  he  was  twenty-one  he  was  entirely 
prepared  for  examination,  and  impatiently  awaited  the  time 
when  he  could  announce  himself  as  an  attorney-at-law. 

A  year  or  two  before  John  was  one  and  twenty,  he  an 
nounced  his  purpose  to  leave  Ohio  and  go  to  Iowa,  think 
ing  that  there  was  a  better  opening  there.  But  his  brother 
thought  not.  For  more  than  a  year  before  he  was  admitted 
to  the  bar,  he  was  able  to  more  than  pay  his  way,  and 
there  was  a  distinct  understanding,  that  as  soon  as  that 
should  take  place,  he  should  be  an  equal  partner  with  his 
brother. 

He  was  admitted  at  Springfield,  Ohio,  the  day  he  was 
one  and  twenty,  and  on  his  return  to  Mansfield,  the  part 
nership  was  announced,  and  he  commenced  practice. 

When  wre  are  told  that  a  young  man,  admitted  to  the 
bar  at  the  age  of  twenty-one,  never  laid  by,  clear  of  ex 
penses,  less  than  a  thousand  dollars  a  year,  it  seems  need 
less  to  inquire  into  his  character  as  a  lawyer.  One  thing 
is  certain,  viz :  when  a  claim  was  sent  to  him  for  collec- 


".]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  33 

tion,  if  paid  by  the  debtor,  the  creditor  was  sure  of  his 
money  on  demand.  No  money  was  ever  lost  through  him. 
This  can  not  be  said  of  all  in  that  profession.  Nor  would 
he  ever  foment  litigation,  in  order  to  fill  his  own  coffer. 
When  he  gave  advice  it  could  be  depended  upon,  as  being 
for  the  real  interest  of  his  client,  It  must  be  remembered 
that  his  life  as  A  lawyer  only  lasted  from  the  age  of  twen 
ty-one  to  thirty-one — ten  years.  There  was  not  time  and 
age  enough  to  have  acquired  a  world-wide  fame.  Yet  he 
was  all  the  time  rising  rapidly  in  the  estimation  of  the  pub 
lic,  as  an  advocate.  It  was  his  habit  in  court,  just  as  it 
has  been  in  Congress,  to  waste  no  time  of  court  or  jury 
upon  matters  of  no  importance,  none  in  decorating  a  plea 
with  the  flowers  of  rhetoric,  but  to  make  his  way,  by  the 
plainest  and  straightest  road  he  could  find,  directly  to  the 
point  or  points  he  wished  to  make.  As  he  always  had 
something  to  say  worth  hearing,  and  took  no  more  time 
than  was  needed  to  say  it,  he  was  always  listened  to  with 
interest,  and  never  failed  in  industry  or  logic  to  make  the 
most  of  his  cause.  On  these  as  his  capital,  he  was  fast 
growing  in  public  estimation,  and  was  often  employed  as 
associate  attorney.  Having  become  thoroughly  acquainted 
with  the  laws  relating  to  land  tenure,  he  was  somewhat  ex 
tensively  employed  as  a  railroad  counselor.  Especially 
was  he  so  employed  by  the  Pittsburg,  Fort  Wayne  and 
Chicago  Railroad,  and  in  this  way  became  a  Director  in 
that  road,  and  holds  that  relation  still.  •  It  is  in  the  Direc 
tors'  meetings  of  that  road  that  he  and  S.  J.  Tilden  have 
opportunities  to  look  each  other  in  the  face. 

The  writer  has  lived  nearly  ten  years  in  Mansfield,  has 
never  taken  any  active  part  in  politics,  and  has  yet  to 
hear  the  first  word  against  Mr.  Sherman  as  a  man  of 
honesty,  integrity,  sobriety,  and  purity.  As  to  all  the 


34  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

moral  duties  of  life,  and  in  all  the  relations  of  life,  none 
can  say  aught  against  him.  Take  every  command  in  the 
second  table  of  the  law,  measure  his  life  by  it,  from  his 
entrance  upon  manhood  to  the  present  time,  and  if  an  ac 
cusation  be  made  the  writer  ventures  to  say  there  is  no 
man  living  who  would  dare  "  throw  the  first  stone."  Lest 
in  this  respect  the  writer  might  be  deemed  partial,  he 
avails  himself  of  some  extracts  from  an  article  in  the 
Cincinnati  Commercial  of  August  26th,  1879: 

"  Mansfield's  best  title  to  fame  at  present  is,  that  it  is 
the  home  of  the  great  financial  Secretary,  who  has  been 
the  Moses  to  lead  his  people  out  of  the  Egyptian  darkness 
of  bankruptcy  and  insolvency,  and  threatened  national 
dishonor  and  pecuniary  distress,  into  the  promised  land  of 
national  integrity  and  general  prosperity  and  content." 

Here  among  his  fellow-citizens,  where  he  began  life  in 
an  humble  way,  a  poor  boy,  with  all  his  future  to  shape, 
he  is  loved,  respected,  and  admired,  and  men  of  all  classes 
mention  his  name  with  pride  as  a  citizen  of  this  city.  For 
two  days  I  have  been  moving  about  incessantly  among  the 
men  of  Mansfield,  and  have  talked  with  at  least  one  hun 
dred,  or  obtained  the  views  of  that  number,  and  I  can  not 
get  trace  of  the  least  blot  on  the  fair  fame  of  the  Secretary 
as  a  lawyer,  a  citizen,  a  business  man,  a  husband,  and  a 
statesman.  In  every  department  of  life,  men  who  have 
been  associated  with  him,  or  opposed  to  him,  are  equally 
warm  in  their  praise  and  sincere  in  their  tokens  of  respect ; 
and  just  such  a  character  as  Mr.  Sherman  sustains  in  his 
sphere  does  Mrs.  Sherman  sustain  in  hers. 

Said  an  old  gentleman  to  me:  "  When  John  first  came  to 
Mansfield  he  was  extremely  economical,  as  was  necessary, 
and  never  spent  a  cent  unnecessarily.  He  had  a  quiet, 
determined  manner,  and  once  started  in  a  direction,  he 


ii.]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  35 

could  not  be  turned  aside  until  he  had  succeeded  or  satis 
fied  himself  beyond  a  doubt  that  he  was  not  working  to  a 
successful  result.  He  always  won  the  confidence  of  his 
clients,  and  was  noted  for  hard  labor  and  hard  thinking. 
He  had  no  bad  habits  or  evil  companions,  but  gave  his 
whole  mind,  and  time,  and  attention  to  his  profession  and 
business.  While  not  a  good  fellow7  and  jovial  companion  in 
the  usual  acceptance  of  the  term,  he  was  always  genial  and 
affable  to  all,  and  seemed  always  more  desirous  of  winning 
friendships  through  respect  than  establishing  a  reputation 
for  good-fellowTship.  While  he  was  a  public-spirited  and 
generous  citizen,  and  far  removed  from  any  smallness  in 
money  matters,  he  was  a  shrewd  financier,  and  naturally  a 
money-making  man ;  never,  I  believe,  making  a  mistake 
in  his  calculations  about  investments.  He  made  it  a  rule 
that  he  must  each  year  lay  aside  at  least  8500,  and  regu 
lated  his  expenditures  in  conformity  with  that  determina 
tion.  He  never  foiled  to  do  it,  and  when  he  saw  his  $500 
safely  invested,  then  he  used  more,  if  there  was  more,  for 
pleasure,  or  was  more  liberal  in  expenses. 

"  About  six  years  after  he  began  practice  he  was  able  to 
start  the  sash  and  blind  factory,  which  he  saw  was  needed, 
and  that  was  worth  to  him  about  85,000  a  year  for  about  six 
years.  It  paid  him  in  all  about  $30,000.  Almost  every 
dollar  he  has  to-day  was  made  when  he  was  a  private  citi 
zen,  or  as  the  result  of  investments  made  during  that  time. 
He  has  very  little  to  show  for  his  long  years  of  public  life, 
or  since  he  has  been  paid  a  salary." 

Some  years  ago  a  report  was  started  that  he  had  amassed 
great  wealth.  Well,  he  has  enough  to  make  him  inde 
pendent,  but  the  insinuation  was  that  there  had  been  some 
thing  unfair  about  its  acquisition.  But  the  man  does  not 
live,  and  has  not  lived,  that  dare  make  any  such  specific 


30  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

charge.  Mr.  Sherman  has  bought  and  sold  real  estate. 
He  laid  up  and  invested,  not  merely  $500  a  year,  as  Mr. 
Hedges  says  he  resolved  to  do,  but  more  than  §1,000  a 
year,  from  the  first  year  of  his  admission  to  the  bar.  He 
neither  directly  nor  indirectly,  by  himself  or  his  friends, 
dealt  in  any  thing  or  bought  any  thing  that  belonged  to 
the  Government  or  could  be  affected  by  legislation.  No 
such  instance  has  been  shown,  nor  can  it  be  specified.  If 
there  had  been  such  a  case  it  would  have  been  found  out 
before  this  time,  when  there  have  been  so  many  determined 
efforts  to  trip  him  up. 

While  Mr.  Sherman  owns  stock  in  some  railroads,  he 
has  been  especially  careful  to  invest  in  none  that  center  in 
or  about  Washington,  so  as  to  avoid  even  the  appearance 
of  evil,  or  of  being  influenced  in  legislation  by  his  personal 
interests. 

In  the  article  already  referred  to  from  the  Cincinnati 
Commercial,  is  the  following:  "Mr.  Sherman's  property, 
all  counted  at  a  liberal  estimate,  is  not  much,  if  at  all, 
over  $100,000,  and  except  some  land  in  Iowa  and  a  square 
of  land  in  Washington,  and  his  Washington  residence,  all 
is  here  in  Mansfield,  O.  It  consists  mainly  of  his  residence 
on  West  Market  Street,  with  fourteen  acres  of  land,  a  farm 
further  west  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  same  street,  for 
which  he  paid  $8,000,  the  Stewart  Farm,  or  'Hill  Farm,' 
as  it  is  called,  and  some  outlying  lots.  Mr.  Wood  and  Mr. 
Hedges,  two  gentlemen  who  know  as  much  about  Mr. 
Sherman  as  any  other  persons,  state  that  his  property  will 
not  bring  over  $100,000,  and  that  had  he  never  gone  into 
public  service  his  wealth  would  have  been  at  least  half  a 
million,  at  his  rate  of  accumulation." 

As  Mr.  Sherman  has  used  no  unfair  means  in  accumulating 
property,  he  has  never  been  successfully  accused  of  expending 


PERSONAL  HISTORY.  37 


it  improperly.  He  lias  never  sought  to  accomplish  his  ends 
by  constructive  bribery  nor  promises  of  offices  nor  emolu 
ment.  It  has  been  attempted  to  fasten  such  an  accusation 
upon  him,  and  failed.  The  Potter  investigation  lias  been 
on  many  a  tongue,  in  the  world  of  politics,  for  a  long  time. 
It  was  reported,  and  doubtless  some  believed,  that  Mr. 
Sherman  had  promised  preferment  to  a  certain  official  if 
he  would  make  returns  in  favor  of  the  Republicans,  whether 
true  or  false,  and  that  a  copy  of  the  letter  making  the 
promise  could  be  produced,  though  the  original  was  de 
stroyed.  A  committee  of  the  House  of  Representatives  was 
appointed,  and  twenty  thousand  dollars  expended  in  the  at 
tempt  to  fasten  the  charge  of  corruption  and  bribery  upon 
the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  What,  it  may  be  asked, 
was  proved  ?  Simply  that  the  letter  was  a  forgery,—  Mr. 
Sherman  had  written  no  such  letter.  But  so  carefully  was 
it  written,  in  order  that  it  might  be  plausible  and  consist 
ent  with  what  was  known,  and  thus  confessed,  to  be  the  in 
tegrity  of  Mr.  Sherman,  that  it  promised—what?  Simply 
that  if  a  certain  official  should  be  in  danger  of  violence 
from  doing  his  duty  the  government  would  protect  him. 
Out  of  this  forged  letter  was  attempted  to  be  fixed  upon 
him  the  charge  of  bribery.  But  it  signally  failed  ;  it  did 
not  soil  the  hem  of  the  Secretary's  garment,  but  returned 
to  plague  the  inventors,  insomuch  that  a  prominent  poli 
tician  is  reported  to  have  said  he  would  give  a  liberal 
reward  if  any  thing  could  be  found  to  overthrow  the  Sec 
retary,  but  he  was  satisfied  that  no  accusation  could 

stand. 

Of  this  Louisiana  accusation,  the  following  is   the 
vision  of  an  eminent  legal  gentleman,  who  was  conversant 
with  all  the  facts  relating  to  it,  and  most  carefully  scruti 
nized  the  evidence  and  the  reports  on  both  sides,  and  these 


38  HON,  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP, 

accord  with  the  writer's  views,  after  a  perusal  of  the  testi 
mony  : 

"The  gist  of  the  attack  on  Secretary  Sherman  was,  that 
in  a  letter  to  Weber  and  Anderson,  men  relied  on  to  fur 
nish  evidence  showing  intimidation  and  violence  in  the 
Presidential  election  in  Louisiana,  in  1876,  Secretary  Sher 
man,  as  one  of  the  visiting  statesmen  sent  by  President 
Grant  to  Louisiana,  held  out  promises  to  them,  in  the  nat 
ure  of  a  bribe,  to  induce  them  to  furnish  the  needed 
affidavits  of  violence  and  intimidation,  so  as  to  give  the  re 
turning  officers  jurisdiction  to  throw  out  the  vote  of  East 
Feliciana  Parish,  and  that  it  was  so  thrown  out  by  these 
means,  thus  secured  by  Sherman's  bribery.  The  result  of 
the  investigation  was  to  show — 

"  1.  That  the  pretended  letter  was  never  written  by  Mr. 
Sherman,  and  was  a  forgery. 

"2.  That  Mr.  Sherman's  conduct  in  Louisiana  was 
strictly  in  accordance  with  right  and  law ;  and  that  he  and 
his  fellow  '  visitors'  were  scrupulously  careful  to  avoid,  and 
that  they  did  avoid,  all  interference  with  the  officers  of 
election,  and  all  others  engaged  in  making  protests  and  re 
turns  as  to  the  election. 

"  3.  That  what  Mr.  Sherman  and  his  associates  did  was 
simply  to  consult  with  Republicans  of  Louisiana,  and  ad 
vise  as  to  the  preparation  of  the  evidence  contemplated  by 
the  constitution  and  laws  of  Louisiana,  to  be  produced,  go 
ing  to  show  the  violence  and  intimidation  which  required 
the  rejection  of  votes. 

"  4.  That  no  act  of  illegality  or  impropriety  was  shown 
against  Mr.  Sherman." 

It  may  be  a  satisfaction  to  the  reader  of  this  sketch  to  see  a 
part  of  the  evidence  given  by  Secretary  Sherman  before  the 
Investigating  Committee,  at  Atlantic  City,  July  24,  1878: 


n.]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  8<J 

"Did  you  ever  write  that  letter?" 
"  I  desire  to  say  that  I  never  wrote  that  letter." 
"Now,  is  it  possible  that  you  could  have  forgotten  the 
writing  of  such  a  letter  as  that  if  you  had  ever  written  it  ?" 
"No,  sir;  I  do  not  think  it  is.       Nor  do  I  think  that  it 
is  physically  possible  for  me  to  have  written  the  letter  on 
that  day  or  at  that  time,  or  that  I  ever  could  have  written 
that  letter." 

"Have  you  any  reason,  other  than  those  you  have  al 
ready  given,  why  you  could  not  have  written  this  letter?" 

"One  reason  Why  I  know  I  never  wrote  that  letter,  why 
I  am  morally  confident  of  it,  in  addition  to  those  that  are 
palpable  on  its  face,  is  this :  If  I  had  written  such  a  letter 
as  that,  why  was  it  never  presented  to  me,  or  why  was  it 
never  shown  to  any  body,  so  far  as  we  know,  until  within 
the  last  three  months?  This  letter,  according  to  Anderson, 
was  a  letter  procured  by  him  to  get  an  office  solely — to 
hold  as  a  leverage  over  myself  and  others  to  get  office  for 
himself  and  Weber ;  and  yet  Anderson  never  mentioned 
that  circumstance  to  me — never  said  that  he  had  a  promise 
from  me,  never  claimed  that  he  had  a  promise  from  me. 
He  was  a  constant  beggar  for  office  of  eveiy  grade,  from  a 
consulship  down,  and  yet  he  never  produced  that  letter,  or 
said  that  he  had  such  a  letter,  or  such  a  promise.  I  think 
that  that  of  itself  is  strong  evidence  that  he  had  no  such 
letter,  either  original  or  copy.  He  says  that  he  applied  to 
me  in  March  for  an  office,  but  he  made  no  reference  to  a 
verbal  or  written  promise,  as  he  would  have  done  if  he  had 
such  a  promise ;  nor  did  he  make  any  such  reference  or 
claims  to  Senator  Matthews,  in  all  their  full  and  somewhat 
angry  correspondence.  Nor  did  he  make  any  such  claim 
to  the  President  nor  to  Judge  Harlan.  Although  he  was 
pressing  his  claims  for  office  on  all  those  gentlemen,  seeking 


40  HOX.  JOHX  SHERMAN.  [cn.\\\ 

to  get  the  kindly  offices  of  Mr.  Harlan  and  Senator  Mat 
thews,  and  constantly  applying  to  the  President,  yet  in  all 
this  struggle  for  office  he  never  mentioned  this  letter.  I 
consider  that  as  a  strong  reason  that  it  did  not  exist. 
The  letter  itself,  I  conceive,  bears  on  its  face  the  improba 
bility  that  a  man  in  my  condition,  under  those  circum 
stances,  would  write  such  a  letter  as  that.  That  is  an 
argument  which  would  strike  a  public  man,  engaged  in 
public  life,  more  than  it  would  an  ordinary  citizen.  I  am 
made  in  this  letter  to  say  that,  '  after  a  long  and  intimate 
acquaintance  with  Governor  Hayes,  I  am  justified  in 
assuming  the  responsibility  for  promises  made.'  Such  lan 
guage  as  that  could  not  be  used  by  a  public  man  of  any  or 
dinary  discretion.  I  know  very  well  that,  acting  as  we 
were  under  the  obligation  of  a  rule  by  which  we  refused  to 
interfere  in  any  way  with  the  conduct  of  any  officer,  I 
would  not  undertake  to  give  any  assurance  or  guarantee 
(the  word  guarantee  is  a  legal  phrase,  and  I  know  the 
meaning  of  it),  and  that  is  an  assurance  that  I  never  could 
have  used  such  language.  Therefore,  when  suddenly  con 
fronted  with  this  letter  when  it  was  presented  to  me  by  the 
chairman,  I  could  see  that  the  first  part  of  the  letter  might 
be  true.  I  have  no  doubt  I  did  say  to  friend  and  foe  in 
Louisiana,  that  the  Republicans  in  Louisiana  who  stood  by 
their  guns  there  deserved  credit.  I  believed  then,  and  I 
believe  now,  that  the  conspiracy  to  defeat  a  fair  election  in 
Louisiana  was  clearly  and  plainly  proven,  and  I  felt  it  as 
keenly  as  any  fact  in  my  life.  If  I  had  been  a  citizen  of 
Louisiana  I  certainly  would  have  been  among  those  who 
were  killed,  because  I  would  have  resisted  to  the  bitter  end 
the  organization  of  those  rifle  clubs,  which  were  marching 
round  at  night  and  driving  poor  negroes  to  the  swamps.  I 
would  have  resisted,  and  probably  have  lost  my  life,  as 


IT.]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  41 

others  did.  I  have  no  doubt  that,  in  conversation  in  New 
Orleans,  I  evinced  a  great  deal  of  feeling,  as  I  did  in  the 
Senate  also.  I  made  the  same  declarations  there  ;  I  make 
them  now  ;  I  made  them  in  New  Orleans.  I  say  that  there 
never  can  be  peace  and  order  and  quiet  while  such  things 
occur  as  occurred  confessedly  in  Louisiana,  in  the  fall  of 
1876 — scenes  of  intimidation,  and  violence,  and  outrage, 
and  wrong,  that  I  can  not  read  of  now  without  a  feeling  of 
resentment.  There  could  be  no  controversy  about  it. 
Here  and  there  an  ignorant  negro  man  may  back  out  from 
what  he  said  then,  but  the  testimony  was  overwhelming  of 
the  existence,  in  certain  districts  there,  of  criminal  vio 
lence,  intimidation,  and  wrong,  which  excited  me  to  almost 
angry  protest  and  remonstrance  whenever  I  talked  about  it; 
and  I  can  not  talk  about  it  now  without  a  feeling  of  resent 
ment.  I  have  no  doubt,  therefore,  that  when  this  man 
says  I  said  to  him,  what  I  said  to  every  body  who  came  near 
me,  that  these  outrages  ought  to  be  redressed,  that  the 
people  ought  to  be  protected  against  such  outrages,  and 
that  I  believed  they  would  be  protected ;  I  have  no  doubt 
that  I  did  say  it  to  him,  as  I  did  to  every  body." 

The  very  attempts  of  others  to  crush  Mr.  Sherman  have 
only  brought  out  the  purity  of  his  character  in  clearer  and 
bolder  relief.  Nor  does  he  owe  his  success  to  the  aid  of 
powerful  friends.  He  was  elected  to  Congress  at  the  age 
of  thirty-one;  because,  from  a  variety  of  circumstances, 
he  seemed  to  be  the  man  for  the  place ;  and  he  has  been 
kept  in  public  life  ever  since,  because  he  was  wanted.  He 
was  wanted,  because  there  were  things  to  be  done  that  no 
one  else  could  do  as  well  as  he,  and  he  could  do  them  be 
cause  he  was  fitted  for  it.  He  was  fitted  for  his  work  - 

1.  By  all  the  advantages  derived  from  hereditary  merit. 

2.  By  great  mental  capacity. 


42  HON.  JOHN  SHEPMAX.  [CHAP. 

3.  By  a  strong  will  and  untiring  industry. 

4.  By  being,  in  early  life,   thrown   upon  his   own  re 
sources. 

These  advantages  being  marred  by  no  counteracting 
vices,  render  him  fit  for  all  that  has  hitherto  been  in 
trusted  to  him  and  for  any  office  that  he  may  hereafter  be 
intrusted  with. 

The  following  gives  Mr.  Sherman's  present  impressions 
respecting  the  origin  of  that  letter.  Says  a  reporter:  "In 
the  first  place,  I  slaved  the  Secretary  a  bit  I  had  tele 
graphed  to  the  Enquirer  from  Washington  about  the  Jenks 
letter,  where  a  Democrat  expressed  the  view  that  the  letter 
had  been  .manufactured  by  some  strikers  in  order  to  make 
Mr.  Tilden  think  lie  had  found  a  prize,  and  to  shell  out 
money  for  more.  Mr.  Sherman  said: 

"  '  Well,  as  to  that,  I  am  pretty  sure  that  Mrs.  Jenks 
herself  manufactured  that  letter.  The  best  information  I 
have  is,  that  she  dropped  this  letter  in  an  envelope  ad 
dressed  to  herself,  containing  several  inclosures,  at  a  prom 
inent  dry-goods  house  in  New  Orleans,  where  she  had  gone 
to  purchase  something.  The  letter  was  dexterously  slipped 
under  some  goods  she  did  not  take,  and  when  she  went 
away  the  envelope  was  noticed.  The  people  who  kept  the 
store  were  radical  Democrats,  and  knew  that  Mrs.  Jenks 
was  suspected  to  have  an  original  Sherman  letter.  They, 
therefore,  opened  the  envelope,  kept  what  it  contained,  and 
advised  the  Democratic  managers  that  they  had  positively 
got  the  expected  original.' 

"  '  She  swindled  the  whole  party  at  one  swoop,  then, 
Mr.  Sherman?' 

" '  Yes,  they  instantly  prepared  their  Congressional 
Committee  to  go  to  New  Orleans,  and  they  meant  to  pro 
duce  this  letter  on  the  spot  and  let  it  have  a  terrific  effect. 


".]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  43 

But  when  they  got  the  letter  it  slowly  broke  through  their 
minds  what  a  thorough  .swindle  had  been  played  on  them 
by  a  mere  woman.  When  that  letter  was  submitted  to 
experts,  it  was  found  absolutely  impossible  for  me  to  have 
penned  it.  One  of  their  best  experts  said  to  me,  'You 
could  not  have  written  that  letter,  sir,  if  you  had  practiced 
for  years  upon  it.  It  is  not  in  your  hand  nor  education  of 
your  fingers  to  have  written  it,'  They  understand  now 
how  they  were  taken  in." 

Mr.  Sherman,  it  is  true,  did  not  have  the  opportunity 
of  college  discipline  that  some  do,  but  he  had  the  advan 
tage  of  brains,  and  industry,  and  memory,  and  sound  dis 
cretion,  such  as  are  not  found  combined  in  one  in  a  hun 
dred  thousand  men  of  collegiate  training.  Few  are  capa 
ble  of  accomplishing  such  achievements  once  in  a  life-time, 
as  he  has  done  every  year  for  a  quarter  of  a  century.  The 
writer  of  this  has,  in  the  course  of  fifty  years  as  a*  teacher, 
had  a  great  many  students  under  his  care,  and  in  all  his 
life  he  never  found  but  two  with  mental  capacity  equal  to 
that  of  John  Sherman.  So  if  Mr.  Sherman  had  not  the 
advantage  of  early  classical  culture,  he  has  been  thoroughly 
educated,  in  the  matter  of  finance  and  every  thing  else  that 
a  statesman  ought  to  know.  If  there  is  any  advantage  in 
an  ancestry  of  clear-headed,  honest-hearted,  widely-trusted, 
and  highly-honored  men,  for  two  hundred  and  fifty  years 
past,  it  is  Secretary  Sherman's.  There  are  minds  that  are 
more  effective  without  classical  culture  than  others  are 
with.  John  Bunyan  was  without  culture  of  any  kind 
except  what  he  derived  from  ONE  book,  and  he  wrote  the 
purest  classic  in  the  English  language.  Classical  learning 
is  never  to  be  despised  nor  disregarded.  It  may  help  to 
enrich  the  most  gifted  minds,  but  what  can  the  most  fin 
ished  culture  do  towards  the  training  of  a  statesman?  If 


44  HOX.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

a  man  can  think  the  best  and  most  effective  thoughts,  de 
vise  the  best  methods,  dress  them  in  the  most  appropriate 
garb,  and  know  exactly  when  and  where  to  present  them, 
and  infix  them  into  the  most  minds,  is  not  his  the  best 
culture  for  a  statesman?  What  could  Mr.  Sherman  do 
with  the  rich  drapery  of  lore,  ancient  or  modern?  He 
would  never  put  it  on.  He  has  no  time  for  it.  He  is  too 
earnest,  too  much  in  haste  to  accomplish  his  ends.  He 
will  not  use  stilts  so  long  as  he  has  solid  ground  to  walk 
on.  Mr.  Sherman's  power  lies  in  being  able  to  make  every 
word  tell  to  the  best  advantage.  His  taste  has  ever  been 
for  politics,  and,  therefore,  state  papers  of  all  past  ages 
have  been  carefully  studied,  and  without  ever  thinking 
what  dress  his  thoughts  should  wear,  or  in  what  style  he 
should  clothe  them,  that  style  has  unconsciously  been 
formed  upon  the  best  models  of  English  and  American 
state  papers.  In  such  the  best  style  is  to  get  as  much 
thought  as  possible  into  the  fewest  words.  Take  an  illus 
tration  of  this.  The  writer  knew  a  stone-cutter  once.  He 
came  from  Wales.  His  hands  were  as  white  and  his  skin 
as  fair  as  a  lady's.  No  one  would  suppose  he  ever  handled 
a  mallet  and  chisel.  That  man,  with  comparatively  little 
fatigue,  would  do  nearly  twice  the  amount  of  work  in  a 
given  time  that  could  be  gotten  out  of  the  hardiest  of 
workmen  around.  How  so?  He  never  struck  a  blow  till 
the  chisel  was  in  the  right  place.  He  never  made  a  facing 
that  had  to  be  made  over  again.  So  with  Mr.  Sherman. 
He  wastes  no  time  nor  energy  upon  the  Avinds,  but  drives 
directly  at  conviction.  Mr.  Sherman's  classics  are  state 
papers,  his  mallet  a  brave  and  persevering  will,  his  chisel 
the  finest  steel  of  common  sense,  and  its  edge  truth  and 
equity. 

Besides,  Mr.  Sherman's  capacity  for  learning,  as  well  as 


"•]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  45 

tenacity  in  retaining  it,  must  be  exceedingly  great,  and 
only  surpassed  by  his  industry  in  acquiring  knowledge:  so 
that  it  can  never  be  said  he  is  without  that  peculiar  cult 
ure  that  fits  him  for  his  position  and  his  work. 

Another  characteristic  of  Mr.  Sherman  is  that  he  always 
knows  where  his  tools  are.  Some  may  think  there  is  too 
much  "red  tape"  about  him,  but  if  there  is,  it  is  natural 
to  him.  With  him,  every  thing  must  be  in  order.  He 
came  even  from  Washington  to  see  that  "his  fences"  were 
in  order!  If  a  debt  is  due  him  it  must  be  paid,  if  he  has 
to  give  the  money  to  pay  it  with,  as  was  actually  the  case 
in  one  instance  known  to  the  writer.  If  a  debt  is  due  him 
he  expects  it  when  due,  not  before.  His  mind  acts,  too, 
with  tremendous  rapidity.  This,  with  the  perfect  order 
with  which  it  acts,  enables  him  to  approach  almost  any 
subject  at  once,  and  so  logically  do  his  thoughts  flow,  one 
after  another,  that  he  seems  to  be  well  prepared.  Then, 
again,  he  never  employs  an  instrument  till  he  has  learned 
how  to  use  it.  He  never  speaks  without  understanding 
his  subject. 

That  Mr.  Sherman  had  naturally  a  very  keen  temper, 
and  one  easily  excited,  may  readily  be  inferred  from  his 
whole  course  in  Congress.  Had  there  not  been  within  a 
strong  passion,  easily  aroused  when  insulted,  he  would  have 
been  overrun  and  trodden  down,  by  the  end  of  the  first 
term  in  Congress,  in  his  frequent  conflicts  with  "  Southern 
chivalry." 

A  keen  temper  is  said  to  be  as  necessary  for  a  man,  as 
for  a  knife,  and  Mr.  Sherman's  temper  must  have  been 
often  put  to  the  test.  But  that  temper  was,  and  is,  under 
the  most  complete  control.  Once  only  in  Congress  did  it 
master  him.  That  was  when  he  threw  the  wafers  at  the 
M.  C.  They  were  less  hurtful,  however,  and  served  a 


46  HON.  JOHN  SHKKMAX.  [CHAP. 

much  better  purpose  than  bullets.  But  the  fact  that  such 
a  spirit,  so  fearless,  mastered  him  but  once  in  all  his  public 
life,  speaks  volumes  in  regard  to  the  force  of  his  character. 
Few  men,  of  those  who  make  louder  professions  than  he 
does,  have  all  their  appetites  and  passions  under  as  perfect 
control,  as  Mr.  Secretary  Sherman.  The  writer  has  never 
heard  that  a  word  of  scandal  was  ever  uttered  against  him. 
His  food  and  drink,  as  to  quality  and  quantity,  and  his 
hours  of  business,  of  recreation,  and  of  rest,  are  all  arranged 
as  methodically  as  possible,  with  a  due  regard  to  the  pro 
motion  of  health,  and  activity  of  body  and  mind.  None 
of  his  energies  are  wasted  in  dissipation  nor  in  luxury;  and 
yet  he  is  generous  and  hospitable.  It  is  said  that  ambition 
masters  him.  Well,  it  may  as  well  be  ambition  as  any 
thing;  airl  the  man  does  not  live  that  is  not  mastered  by 
something.  But  if  ambition  does  govern  him,  all  the 
means  of  gratifying  it  are  under  the  control  of  an  indom 
itable  will.  If  his  aim  in  life  has  been  to  reach  a  high 
position,  his  will  has  ever  been  to  deserve  it  by  faithful 
service,  and  attain  it  by  fair  and  honorable  means.  Of 
low  and  mean  art,  or  cajolery,  or  bribery,  or  any  thing 
that  shades  tlmt  way,  he  never  was  accused  successfully. 
If  he  can  not  attain  elevation  otherwise  than  by  doing 
wrong,  he  will  go  without  it. 

He  is  possessed  of  a  strong  will,  and  one  that  is  prompt 
to  act.  A  characteristic  fact  is  mentioned  by  one  of  his 
neighbors,  which  clearly  evinces  this  fact,  as  well  as  his 
courage.  While  quite  a  youn^  man,  at  an  election,  politics 
ran  high,  and  the  polls  being  held  in  a  place  with  a  long 
narrow  entrance,  the  opposite  party  got  possession  and 
blocked  up  the  way  with  a  view  to  keeping  their  opponents 
out.  There  they  stood,  some  of  them  old  men,  besieging 
the  entrance.  Mr.  Sherman  came  up  with  his  slim,  wiry 


II.]  PERSONAL.  HISTORY.  47 

frame,  threaded  his  way  through  the  crowd  of  his  political 
friends,  turned  round  and  said:  "  Whigs,  stand  firm,"  and 
then  led  the  way  through  the  throng  to  the  place  of  voting, 
followed  by  his  party  friends,  without  further  opposition. 

The  chief  of  a  bureau  came  to  him  one  day  lately,  in 
Washington,  for  an  order  to  pay  for  some  machinery. 
"Has  it  been  advertised?"  said  the  Secretary.  "  No,"  said 
the  chief;  ."  there  are  but  two  places  where  it  can  be  made, 
and  we  are  accustomed  to  get  their  bids,  and  contract  with 
the  lowest,"  "But,"  said  the  Secretary,  "  the  law  says  it 
must  be  advertised."  "But  at  least  this  may  pass,  for  it 
is  made,  and  we  need  it."  "I  can  not  help  that;  the  law 
says  it  must  be  advertised,  and  advertised  it  must  be." 

And  yet  with  all  this  firmness,  he  is  not  stubborn.  He 
is  ready  to  yield  any  thing  that  is  not  wrong,  nor  in  vio 
lation  of  law.  No  one  was  ever  more  successful  than  he 
in  conciliating  widely  conflicting  views  and  opinions,  yield 
ing  his  own  preferences,  and  thus  working  his  measures 
through  Congress.  When  he  could  not  get  all  that  he 
wanted,  he  would  take  what  he  could  get,  and  bide  his 
time  to  get  the  rest.  To  be  thus  firm,  and  not  stubborn, 
is  a  trait  of  great  value  in  a  legislator  or  public  officer. 

The  following  editorial  from  a  Mansfield  paper  will  show 
the  estimation  in  which  he  is  held  by  his  own  immediate 
neighbors : 

"  We  have  watched  with  interest  the  discussion  in  the 
press  as  to  the  election  of  a  Senator  from  Ohio,  and  have 
been  highly  gratified  with  tl>e  manifest  concentration  of  pub 
lic  opinion  in  favor  of  the  re-election  of  Senator  Sherman. 
He  grew  up  among  us,  and  is  personally  known  to  nearly 
all  our  readers.  He  came  here  a  lad  to  study  law  with  his 
brother,  Judge  Sherman,  and  from  1844,  when  admitted 
to  the  bar,  he  has  steadily  risen  in  public  estimation.  For 


48  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

ten  years  he  practiced  law,  and  engaged  in  active  business 
of  various  kinds.  He  was  attorney  for,  and  aided  in  the 
construction  of,  all  the  railroads  that  center  here.  When 
lie  was  elected  to  Congress,  in  1854,  he  carried  this  county, 
though  a  Democratic  county  of  over  fifteen  hundred 
majority.  He  was  four  times  elected  to  Congress  by  a 
majority  of  over  3,000,  and  after  the  first  time,  was  nom 
inated  without  opposition.  Since  his  transfer  to  the  Senate, 
we  have  observed  his  advancement  with  a  natural  pride, 
and  now,  in  the  contest  that  is  going  on,  he  has  the  hearty 
support  of  his  old  constituents.  No  man  could  have  pur 
sued  such  a  career,  holding  always  a  leading  position  among 
his  fellow-members,  without  talents  of  a  high  order.  In  all 
the  leading  questions  of  a  time  fruitful  of  great  events  and 
difficult  problems,  Mr.  Sherman  has  been  prominent  in 
debate,  industrious  in  committee,  watchful,  attentive,  and 
prudent,  and  now  his  influence  in  the  Senate  is  conceded 
by  all  to  be  equal  to  that  of  any  member  of  that  body. 
Ohio  has  been  conspicuous  in  national  events,  in  civil  and 
military  life,  and  we  feel  that  Mansfield  has  contributed 
her  share. 

"We  feel  sure  that  if  the  Democrats  were  to  choose  a 
Republican  senator,  three-fourths  of  them  would  prefer 
Senator  Sherman. 

''In  social  life  among  us  he  is  plain,  unostentatious,  easy 
of  approach  and  popular,  and  his  wife,  a  native  of  Mans 
field,  is  even  more  so." — Mansfield  Herald,  Dec.  21st,  1871. 

Take  also  the  following  from  a  New  York  correspondent 
of  the  Philadelphia  Times:  "Mr.  John  Sherman  is  con 
ceded  the  shrewdest  man  in  the  Cabinet.  He  is  by  far  the 
ablest  politician  connected  with  the  Hayes  administration. 
Hence  his  views  on  any  phase  of  the  political  situation, 
from  a  Republican  stand-point,  are  always  wrorth  perusal. 


"•]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  49 

Sherman  lias  been  described  as  a  cold-blooded  man  of 
brains,  of  the  Charles  Francis  Adams  school.  It  may  be 
so.  But  ask  any  newspaper  man  about  Washington,  whose 
business  has  brought  him  into  contact  with  high  officials  of 
this  and  other  administrations,  and  he  will  immediately  say 
that  Secretary  Sherman  is  one  of  the  most  accessible  and 
courteous  of  a  long  line  of  public  men." 

The  year  of  Mr.  Sherman's  attendance  upon  the  National 
Convention,  at  Philadelphia,  1848,  was  that  in  which  he 
was  joined  in  marriage  with  Miss  Cecelia  Stewart,  daughter 
of  the  Hou,  James  Stewart,  of  Mansfield.  Mr.  Sherman 
has,  by  the  favor  of  God's  providence,  made  several  re 
markably  good  hits  in  life,  as  this  narrative  will  show, 
but  the  grandest  of  all  was  when  his  lot  in  life  was  joined 
with  that  of  Miss  Stewart.  If  it  be  true  that  "he  that 
fmdeth  a  wife  findeth  a  good  thing,"  it  is  very  certain  that 
Mr,  Sherman  found  a  wife,  and  as  certain  that  she  found  a 
husband.  Judge  Stewart  stood  high  in  his  profession,  and 
his  social  position  was  all  that  could  reasonably  be  desired. 
His  memory  is  still  regarded  with  reverence  by  those  who 
knew  him.  He  had  ample  means  of  giving  his  daughter 
as  good  an  education  as  the  schools  at  that  time  afforded, 
and  she  had  a  mind  and  will  capable  of  making  the  best 
possible  improvement  of  her  advantages. 

A  story  is  current  among  her  friends  which,  if  true, 
shows  remarkable  forethought  in  a  girl  at  school,  and  that 
she  can  scheme  to  some  good  purpose  as  well  as  her  hus 
band.  The  story  is  as  follows:  Several  companions  were 
laying  plans  one  day  as  to  what  they  would  do  in  after  life. 
They  talked,  doubtless,  as  most  girls  would.  When  it 
came  her  turn  she  said,  "It  will  be  my  aim  to  make 
my  husband  as  much  of  a  man  as  he  can  be."  The  reader 
will  learn  how  well  this  scheme  was  carried  out. 


50  *       HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

It  is  said  "the  course  of  true  love  never  did  run 
smooth."  If  this  is  so,  then  storms  and  disappointments 
that  sometimes  precede  marriage  form  really  auspicious 
omens  of  connubial  bliss.  It  proves  that  in  this,  as  in  the 
higher  zone  of  spiritual  life,  "the  cross  shall  wear  the 
crown."  If  such  were  the  case  preceding  this  union,  the 
auspicious  omens  have  been  pre-eminently  verified  by  the 
results.  So  far  as  can  be  learned,  from  an  acquaintance 
of  several  years,  it  is  believed  that  Mrs.  Sherman  never 
says  a  foolish  word  or  does  a  foolish  act.  She  never  lays 
aside  her  dignity  nor  passes  contemptuously  by  her  poorest 
neighbor.  Her  reading  is  more  scientific  and  solid  than  is 
common  in  these  times,  and  her  cares  and  activities  more 
diversified.  While  she  never  neglects  her  household,  she 
seems  as  much  interested  in  out-of-door  affairs  as  in  the 
drawing-room.  It  is  said  that  she  owns  a  farm  that  was 
her  father's  and  grandfather's,  and  that  Mr.  Sherman  owns 
one,  and  that  once  they  were  upon  a  strife  to  see  which 
should  reap  the  largest  profits.  The  result  was  in  her 
favor.  Probably  he  was  more  absorbed  in  his  senatorial 
duties  than  she  was,  and  did  not  "keep  up  his  fences" 
quite  so  well  as  she  did.  At  all  events  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Sherman  are  a  strong  team,  and  co-operate  admirably  in 
doing  the  work  of  life.  There  is  no  doubt  of  its  being  her 
end  and  "aim  to  make  her  husband  as  much  of  a  man  as 
he  can  be/'  and  the  material  appears  to  have  been  all  that 
her  ambition  could  have  desired.  The  writer  has  dwelt 
more  fully  than  some  may  think  appropriate,  upon  the 
character  and  accomplishments  of  Mrs.  Sherman,  because 
he  believes  that  a  happy  marriage  is  a  decided  element  in 
the  Secretary's  success  in  life. 

As  to  the  fact  of  Mr.  Sherman's  Irreproachable  moral 
character,  these  pages  will  abundantly  testify.  No  professed 


n.]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  51 

Christian  ever  governs  self  and  every  appetite  more  thor 
oughly  than  do  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sherman.  They  have  never 
been  communicants  in  any  church,  but  are  believers  and 
liberal  supporters  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 
Mrs.  Sherman  was  brought  up  in  the  United  Presbyterian 
Church,  but  since  her  marriage  with  Mr.  Sherman  she  has 
faithfully  attended  that  of  his  choice. 

While  he  was  in  Congress  it  was  their  custom  to  pass 
the  summer  at  their  delightful  home  in  Mansfield,  and 
commonly,  once  at  least  during  their  stay,  the  Sunday- 
school  scholars  of  the  writer's  church,  and  their  friends  and 
neighbors,  were  invited  to  a  gratuitous  lawn  festival,  on 
Mr.  Sherman's  beautifully-shaded  grounds.  It  is  quite 
certain  that  the  little  folks  of  that  church,  while  they 
remember  Mrs.  Sherman's  richly-laden  tables,  beneath 
that  dense  foliage,  and  the  zest  with  which  Mr.  Sherman 
played  croquet  with  them,  or  watched  their  playing,  will 
never  say  of  him,  as  a  noted  orator  at  the  East  is  reported 
to  have  said,  that  "  he  has  no  heart." 

Mr.  Sherman's  interest  in  the  temperance  cause  began 
at  an  early  day  in  the  movement.  His  first  speech  in  its 
favor  was  when  he  was  a  junior  rodman  on  the  Muskingum 
Improvement.  Then  it  was  that  he  boldly  stood  up  and 
defended  a  temperance  lecturer  who  was  on  the  point  of 
being  mobbed  by  the  laborers.  It  required  courage  to  be 
a  temperance  advocate  then,  and  on  such  occasions  Mr. 
Sherman  is  always  in  the  front  rank.  But  at  that  time 
only  alcoholic  liquors  were  excluded,  and  since  then  Mr. 
Sherman,  with  such  men  as  the  sainted  Mcllvaine,  and 
the  present  Dr.  Crosby,  of  New  York,  has  never  changed 
his  creed,  and  Mrs.  S.  is  a  unit  with  him.  It  is  perfectly 
safe  to  say  that  no  man  ever  saw  Mr.  Sherman  in  the  least 
excited  by  any  stimulating  beverage.  The  facts  that  he 


52  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAF. 

was  twenty -four  years  in  Congress  and  never  in  a  broil, 
when  any  thing  but  wafers  passed,  that  he  was  compelled, 
often  upon  the  spur  of  the  moment,  to  pass  judgment  upon 
matters  of  the  greatest  importance,  and  on  which  good  men 
differed,  and  yet  the  results  proved  he  was  right,  are 
sufficient  without  further  testimony  to  demonstrate  that  his 
keenest  perceptions  were  never  impaired  by  surfeit  of  any 
kind  whatever. 

A  correspondent  of  the  Boston  Herald  has  drawn  an  in 
teresting  picture,  which  gives  a  very  just  view  of  Mr. 
Sherman,  his  habits  and  mode  of  life,  and  is  here  inserted 
as  a  corroborating  witness  : 

WASHINGTON,  D.  C.,  July  19,  1879, 

Secretary  Sherman  is  a  little  late  in  making  his  acquaintance 
with  the  New-England  public.  When  Congress  meets  next  year, 
after  the  Presidential  election,  a  period  of  twenty-five  years  will 
have  elapsed  since  Mr.  Sherman  first  entered  Congress  and  be 
came  a  National  man.  In  a  quarter  of  a  century  of  constant 
political  service,  one  might  suppose  that  the  people  of  New 
England  would  have  come  to  know  him  well.  Yet  I  have  an 
idea  that  personally  he  is  almost  as  unknown  as  Mr.  Hayes  him 
self  before  he  became  President.  A  shrewd  old  man,  who  knows 
National  politics  to  the  core,  spoke  of  John  Sherman  to  me  not 
long  ago  as  "  a  man  without  a  friend  in  the  world."  Interpreted 
in  one  way,  this  remark  is  not  far  from  the  truth.  Of  the  kind 
of  friends  which  some  of  our  ambitious  public  men  cultivate,  he 
is  absolutely  destitute.  When  Salmon  P.  Chase  was  a  candidate 
for  the  Presidency,  fifteen  years  ago,  a  set  of  conscienceless  news 
paper  writers  were  hired  at  so  much  a  week  to  puff  him  through 
out  the  American  press.  They  did  the  job  thoroughly  while  the 
pay  lasted,  and  some  of  them  have  been  exalting  the  profession 
of  journalism  ever  since.  Mr.  Sherman  is  reputed  to  be  as  well 
able  as  Mr.  Tilden  himself  to- maintain  a  literary  bureau,  but 
that  does  not  happen  to  be  his  way.  If  there  be  any  one  person 
in  politics  or  journalism  who,  more  than  another,  has  the  ear 
?:irl  the  attention  of  Mr.  Sherman,  I  do  not  know  who  that  inti- 


ii.]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  53 

mate  person  is.  I  have  never  known  Mr.  Sherman  to  treat  any 
person  who  has  called  upon  him  otherwise  than  kindly  and  cour 
teously,  and  I  have  never  known  any  one  to  presume  to  trade 
upon  or  boast  of  his  influence  with  him.  Most  of  those  who 
know  him  regard  him  as  a  "cold"  man — which,  I  am  happy  to 
say,  he  is.  We  have  so  many  statesmen,  nowadays,  who  are  not 
"  cold  ! "  No  one  can  get  a  thorough  comprehension  of  the  state 
of  politics  and  society,  during  the  first  years  of  the  Republic, 
without  realizing  the  pangs  which  numbers  of  the  people's  lead 
ers  felt  because  they  were  not  permitted  to  slap  the  father  of  his 
country  on  his  back.  They  regarded  any  public  man,  whose  back 
could  not  be  slapped  in  a  familiar  way,  as  tending  toward  a 
monarchical  system  of  government.  Very  much  the  same  feeling 
prevails  to-day  toward  any  man  who  does  not  let  himself  down  to 
the  level  of  "the  boys,"'  and  Mr.  Sherman  is  one  of  these  men.  I 
could  name  three  or  four  Presidential  candidates  who  permit  the 
lowest  and  dirtiest  of  adventurers  to  associate  with  them  on  inti 
mate  terms  in  private.  Mr.  Sherman  does  not  do  this.  He  has 
no  digue  in  Washington. 

It  was,  perhaps,  natural  that  Mr.  Sherman,  taking  the  place  in 
the  Senate  of  the  United  States  to  which  Mr.  Chase  had  been 
chosen  in  1861,  should  have  taken  the  lead  on  financial  questions 
in  that  body.  But  he  could  not  have  done  this  if  he  had  not 
already  led  off  as  an  economist  and  a  financier  in  the  House  of 
Representatives,  and  he  could  not  have  taken  the  lead  which  he 
did  in  either  House  without  great  intellectual  aptitude  for  this 
branch  of  statesmanship. 

He  could  not  know  in  1S61-'G5  that  it  would  fall  to  him  fifteen 
years  later  to  complete  in  the  Treasury  Department  the  work 
which  Mr.  Chase  was  then  laying  out  for  the  future.  But  if  he 
had  known  that  such  was  to  be  his  task,  he  would  have  proceeded 
to  concentrate  his  attention,  as  he  did,  upon  the  finances.  Having 
been  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Ways  and  Means  in  the 
Thirty-sixth  Congress,  it  was  natural  that,  on  his  promotion  to 
the  Senate,  he  should  have  a  place  on  the  Finance  Committee. 
When  Mr.  Fessenden,  the  chairman  on  that  committee,  was  ap 
pointed  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  in  place  of  Mr.  Chase,  Mr. 
Sherman  became  chairman  of  the  committee,  and,  when  Mr.  Fes 
senden  returned  to  the  Senate  in  1866,  Mr.  Sherman  gave  up  the 


54  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

position  to  him.  In  1869  Mr.  Sherman  again  succeeded  Mr.  Fes- 
senden  as  chairman  of  the  committee,  and  held  the  position  up 
to  the  time  when  he  became  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  in  1877 — a 
period  of  eight  years.  No  other  man  in  Congress  concentrated 
his  attention  on  this  one  subject  as  Mr.  Sherman  did,  and  no  one 
else  wielded  a  larger  influence.  Mr.  Sherman  alone,  of  all  the 
statesmen  of  the  period,  since  the  death  of  Sumner,  has  been  able 
to  make  a  printed  volume  of  his  speeches.  He  is  the  only  man 
in  the  United  States  government  whose  views  on  any  question  of 
public  affairs  in  extenso  are  obtainable  in  book  form.  The  dis 
tinction  is  one  that  deserves  to  be  emphasized.  So  few  of  our 
public  men  ever  print  any  thing  outside  of  the  pages  of  the  Con 
gressional  Record ;  so  many  of  them  never  read  any  thing,  appa 
rently,  except  the  Record  and  the  newspapers.  There  were  many 
reasons  why,  when  Mr.  Hayes  became  President,  he  desired  to 
have  Mr.  Sherman  for  his  Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  If  there 
had  been  no  other  reason,  his  personal  fitness  for  the  place  was  a 
sufficient  one. 

The  royal  road  to  the  White  House  ought  to  pass  through  the 
Treasury,  but  it  seems  never  to  have  done  so.  No  man  has  put 
himself  in  the  way  of  being  elected  to  the  Presidency  by  render 
ing  the  country  great  service  as  Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  Some 
thing  has  always  occurred  to  put  an  end  to  the  political  prospects 
of  our  financial  ministers.  Hamilton  was  the  greatest  of  finan 
ciers,  but  his  party  melted  away  from  behind  him,  and  he  fell, 
ultimately,  in  a  duel.  Gallatin  was  as  wise  and  skillful  as  a 
statesman  could  be,  and  the  war  of  1812  and  Jefferson's  jackals 
drove  him  out  of  politics.  We  run  along  down  the  line,  noting 
many  able  men,  until  \ve  come  to  Salmon  P.  Chase.  He  became 
a  candidate  for  the  Presidency  while  Secretary  under  Mr.  Lin 
coln,  and  Mr.  Lincoln  was  obliged  not  only  to  outmaneuver  him 
as  a  candidate,  but  to  take  him  out  of  his  Cabinet.  How  many 
people  know  that  the  advent  of  William  E.  Chandler  in  national 
politics  was  the  result  of  Lincoln's  desire  to  have  an  Assistant 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury  who  would  watch  Mr.  Chase?  Mr. 
Chase  remained  a  candidate  until  he  died,  but  he  never  got  even 
a  nomination.  Then  we  had  the  case  of  Mr.  Bristow,  the  candi 
date  of  the  reform  Republicans  in  1876.  He  owed  his  political 
prominence  to  the  fact  that  he  was  Secretary  of  the  Treasury, 


ii.]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  55 

and,  just  because  he  was  Secretary,  lie  could  not  get  the  nomina 
tion.  Now  we  have  Mr.  Sherman  a  candidate  for  the  Presidency 
under  circumstances  very  different  from  those  by  which  any 
Secretary  was  ever  surrounded  before. 

In  the  first  place,  Mr.  Hayes  is  entirely  and  cordially  in  favor 
of  making  Mr.  Sherman  the  candidate  next  year.  For  a  Presi 
dent  at  the  end  of  a  first  administration  to  give  his  support 
heartily  to  his  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  for  the  succession,  is  an. 
unexampled  thing  in  politics.  It  enables  the  Secretary  to  put 
his  candidacy  at  once  on  the  open  ground  of  fair,  decent  ambi 
tion  and  endeavor.  It  obviates  all  jealousy  and  bickering,  and 
gives  the  Secretary  an  advantage  in  the  contest  for  the  nomina 
tion  never  possessed  by  any  of  his  predecessors.  In  the  second 
place,  Mr.  Sherman  has  the  respect,  and,  in  a  large  measure,  the 
confidence  of  the  business  interests  and  the  wealth  of  the  country. 
He  is  identified  in  the  popular  mind  with  the  resumption  of 
specie  payments,  which  has  turned  out  to  be  nothing  but  the  ban 
ishment  of  a  doubt  and  a  debate.  We  were  down  to  hard-pan 
before.  All  that  needed  to  be  done  was  to  convince  a  lot  of  fool 
ish  and  ignorant  people  of  the  fact.  Mr.  Sherman  has  the  credit 
of  doing  this.  The  refunding  of  the  debt,  which  was  the  inevita 
ble  result  of  the  abolishment  of  the  premium  on  gold,  has  fol 
lowed,  and  astonished  the  country.  It  has  been  managed  with 
the  greatest  skill  and  vigor  by  the  Secretary,  and  the  recognition 
of  his  agency  in  the  business  is  universal.  There  is  another  side 
to  his  administration  of  the  Treasury  Department,  which  the 
public  does  not  see.  As  an  executive  officer,  Mr.  Sherman's  equal 
has  not  been  seen  in  the  Treasury  Department  during  the  last 
quarter  of  the  century,  which  is  the  same  as  saying  during  mod 
ern  times.  His  power  of  concentration  and  of  rapid  work  is 
extraordinary.  His  comprehension  of  the  working  of  the  depart 
ment  is  perfect,  and  his  knowledge  of  its  development  during  the 
war  period  is  complete.  He  has  watched  every  part  of  this  ma 
chine  as  it  has  grown  to  its  present  enormous  proportions.  He 
is,  in  fact,  as  familiar  with  the  department  as  if  he  had  been 
Secretary  for  the  past  twenty  years.  It  will  be  noted  that,  since 
he  has  been  at  the  head  of  it,  there  have  been  no  scandals  in  the 
department.  Abuses  have  been  corrected,  and  the  great  machine 
has  been  put  in  excellent  order.  Every  person  in  the  department 


56  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN,  [CHAP. 

feels  that  nothing  can  go  amiss  without  the  knowledge  of  it 
coming  to  the  Secretary.  The  discipline,  if  that  is  the  word  to 
use,  is,  therefore,  better  than  it  has  ever  been  since  the  depart 
ment  reached  its  present  proportions. 

If  Mr.  Sherman  gets  into  the  White  House  he  may  do  many 
things  that  are  not  yet  thought  of.  If  he  does  not  get  there  lie 
may  go  back  to  the  Senate  again  from  Ohio  in  1881,  the  prospect 
being  that  his  party  will  control  the  election  of  Mr.  Thurman's 
successor.  Unless  he  shall  become  President,  his  fame  must  rest 
with  his  achievements  in  the  Treasury.  Outside  of  his  connec 
tion  with  the  linances  it  is  difficult  to  make  much  out  of  his 
career  in  Congress.  Always  a  strong  and  dignified  figure,  he 
seems  to  have  had  a  happy  faculty  of  concentrating  his  powers 
on  practical  questions  of  affairs,  and  has  let  others  do  the  polit 
ical  slang-whanging.  He  entered  the  House  of  Representatives  in 
1855,  at  the  first  session  of  the  Thirty-fourth  Congress.  He  had 
been  a  Conservative  Whig,  and  had  represented  that  party  in  its 
Conventions  in  1848  and  1852.  He  succeeded  a  Democrat  named 
Lindsey  in  the  Thirteenth  Ohio  .District,  and  was  elected  to-  the 
three  succeeding  Congresses,  not  serving  out  his  term  in  the 
Thirty-seventh  Congress  on  account  of  his  election  to  the  Senate. 
His  first  vote  was  cast  for  X.  P.  Banks  for  Speaker,  and  he  sup 
ported  him  warmly.  In  this  Congress  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs.  Being  a  new  member  it  was  im 
possible  for  him  to  take  a  very  prominent  part.  Hs  riingled  in 
the  debates  occasionally,  and  figured  as  a  determined  opponent  of 
slavery  from  the  first,  following  in  the  footsteps  of  his  colleague 
Giddings,  and  of  Wade  and  Sumner  in  the  Senate.  I  notice,  how 
ever,  that  he  took  a  considerably  more  prominent  part  than  Mr. 
Bingham,  who  entered  Congress  at  the  same  time.  The  greater 
struggles  over  the  slavery  question  in  the  House  were  already 
ended  in  that  body,  for  in  the  election  of  Banks,  after  a  two 
months'  struggle,  the  Southern  Democrats  snw  their  power  pass 
ing  away.  From  this  time  onward  to  1SGO  the  House  of  Repre 
sentatives  was  more  like  a  camp  in  whi  jh  two  hostile  armies  stood 
facing  each  other,  with  nothing  but  a  dead  line  between  them. 
Those  were  the  days  when  men  on  both  sides  carried  revolvers  and 
knives,  and  hissed  murderous  threats  at  each  other  across  the 
middle  aisle  of  the  Representathes'  hall.  SI  erman  came  in  too 


n.]  PLRSONAL  HISTOlfV.  57 

late  to  take  a  very  prominent  part  in  the  slavery  debates,  but  lie 
was  always  "game/'  as  the  boys  say,  in  all  the  conflicts  that 
arose.  A  gentleman  who  served  with  him  in  the  Thirty-fourth 
and  Thirty-fifth  Congresses,  narrated  to  me  an  incident  that 
shows  the  sort  of  feeling  that  prevailed  in  those  exciting  years. 
One  day  in  the  House,  a  member  from  Tennessee,  named  John 
V.  AVright,  took  exception  to  something  that  Mr.  Sherman  had 
said,  and  walked  over  from  his  seat  to  the  Republican  side,  pro 
ceeding  up  the  aisle  in  a  threatening  manner  toward  Mr.  Sher 
man,  who  was  in  his  seat.  He  made  some  offensive  remark  as 
he  came  within  ear-shot  of  the  Ohio  member,  who  instantly 
grasped  a  box  of  wafers,  such  as  was  then  daily  placed  on  every 
member's  desk,  and  threw  it  in  the  Tennesseean's  face.  The  oc 
currence  attracted  attention,  and  it  was  expected,  by  all  who  saw 
Sherman's  act,  that  there  would  be  a  fight,  but  the  Tennessee 
bully,  after  hesitating  a  moment,  shook  the  wafers  from  his  head 
and  shoulders,  turned  about  and  walked  away.  The  incident  has 
never  got  into  print  before,  and  it  is  said  that  Mr.  Sherman  never 
liked  to  refer  to  it."  In  the  Thirty-sixth  Congress  Mr.  Sherman 
became  the  Republican  leader,  and  was  made  the  candidate  for 
Speaker.  The  contest  that  ensued  was  as  long  and  as  exciting  as 
that  which  resulted  in  the  election  of  Banks  four  years  before. 
Mr.  Sherman  had  indorsed  Hinton  Rowan  Helper's  book,  The 
Impending  Crisis.  He  claimed  not  to  have  known  what  were  its 
contents.  The  Free  Soilers  from  the  Middle  States  would  not 
vote  for  him,  and  his  friends  were  finally  obliged  to  abandon  his 
name  and  to  unite  on  Pennington,  of  New  Jersey.  The  contest 
ended  in  Pennington's  election  February  1,  1860.  Fourteen 
months  later  the  Southerners  were  leaving  Congress  and  making 
ready  for  war,  and  Mr.  Sherman  was  elected  to  the  Senate.  That 
Mr.  Sherman  should  have  been  taken  up  for  the  Speakership 
shows  that  he  had  already  gone  to  the  lirad.  Had  he  been  then 
elected  Speaker  of  the  Plouse  he  would  probably  have  held  tin- 
position  through  several  Congresses,  unless  he  had  chosen  to  give 
it  up  for  a  place  in  the  Senate.  After  twenty  years  of  arduous 
political  life,  Mr.  Sherman  seems  to  be  again  becoming  as  promi 
nent  as  he  \\as  in  the  winter  of  1859-60. 

When  Secretary  Sherman  went  into  office  he  determined  to  lend 
all  his  efforts  to  the  resumption  of  spi.de  payments,  and  to  make 


58  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

all  his  fiscal  management  tend  to  that  end.  From  that  object 
neither  friend  nor  foe  has  been  able  to  swerve  him.  He  decided 
at  the  very  outset  to  pile  up  as  much  money  in  the  Treasury  as 
he  could  until  resumption  was  accomplished,  and  to  that  end  he 
scrutinized  every  demand  that  was  made  upon  the  Treasury  for 
money,  and  determined  to  pay  no  money  out  which  he  was  not  ab 
solutely  compelled  by  law  to  do.  The  Secretary  has  a  vast  dis 
cretion  in  the  time  of  paying  many  claims  and  demands  upon  the 
Treasury,  and  he  never  hesitated  to  exercise  it  in  favor  of  his 
"reserve"  fund.  It  made  no  difference  how  hard  any  friend 
might  plead  with  him  for  favors.  He  had  none  to  grant,  and  the 
men  who  supposed  they  had  the  right,  on  personal  grounds,  to 
ask  consideration  from  him,  discovered  that  for  once  their  influ 
ence  went  for  nothing.  I  recollect  hearing  a  claim  agent  tell  some 
time  ago  of  what  occurred  in  regard  to  one  claim  that  was  pend 
ing  before  the  department.  The  claimant,  finding  that  he  could 
not  get  what  he  wanted,  employed  Mr.  Shellabarger  as  his  counsel. 
Mr.  Shellabarger  has  been  Mr.  Sherman's  lawyer  in  all  the  polit 
ical  investigations  that  have  been  set  on  foot  against  him  since 
1876,  and  is  one  of  his  strongest  adherents.  Mr.  Shellabarger 
went  to  him  at  the  department,  and  laid  the  case  in  question  be 
fore  Mr.  Sherman.  The  Secretary  at  once  informed  him  that, 
having  looked  the  matter  over,  he  had  made  up  his  mind  about 
it,  and,  having  made  up  his  mind,  neither  Mr.  Shellabarger  nor 
any  one  else  could  change  it.  He  then  turned  to  his  desk  and 
went  on  with  his  work.  Mr.  Shellabarger  could  do  nothing  but 
abandon  the  business,  and  he  came  away  from  the  department  de 
nouncing  the  Secretary  sharply  for  his  imperviousness  to  reason  in 
the  matter. 

Of  the  personal  and  private  life  of  Mr.  Sherman  it  is  a  pleasure 
to  speak,  although  there  is  not  very  much  to  say.  It  is  quiet  and 
simple.  I  have  three  pictures  of  Mr.  Sherman  in  my  mind.  The 
first  is  of  the  Senator  as  he  stands  in  his  place  in  the  chamber, 
talking  in  his  calm,  but  very  direct  and  vigorous  way,  on  the  sub 
ject  in  hand,  his  tall  figure  bent  a  little  over  his  desk,  upon  which 
lie  rests  his  hands  when  he  does  not  use  them  for  a  gesture,  which 
he  does  but  seldom.  His  remarks,  whether  long  or  short, 
are  models  of  clear  and  straightforward  utterance.  His  deport 
ment  as  a  Senator  is  never  open  to  criticism,  for  he  is  always  at- 


ii.]  PERSONAL  PIISTORY.  59 

tending  to  the  business  in  hand.  Then  there  is  a  picture  of  the 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  seated  at  his  desk,  from  which  he  looks 
up  and  gives  you  a  pleasant  good-morning  as  you  enter,  but  keeps 
his  eyes  on  his  papers  as  he  answers  your  interrogatories,  unless 
you  have  something  very  important  to  demand  his  attention. 
The  desk  before  him,  however,  deeply  covered  with  letters  and 
official  documents,  is  never  in  disorder.  Mr.  Sherman  never 
wastes  any  time  on  any  body,  and  the  man  does  not  live  who  can 
bore  him  for  any  length  of  time.  If  the  caller  does  not  know 
when  his  business  is  done,  he  is  soon  put  in  a  way  of  finding  it 
out,  and  yet  the  Secretary  is  never  blunt  or  brusque  like  his 
brother  Tecumseh,  who  hasn't  as  much  business  to  attend  to  in  a 
week  as  John  has  in  one  day.  The  third  view  of  this  man  is  his 
appearance  in  his  home — a  modest  and  comfortable  house  on 
Franklin  Square.  At  home  he  seems  always  to  sit  at  the  end  of  the 
table  in  the  rear  apartment,  which  answers  for  library  and  dining- 
room.  There  he  reads  his  papers,  writes  his  letters,  smokes  his 
cigars,  talks  to  his  friends,  and  I  suspect  that  when  he  leaves  that 
seat  he  leaves  it  to  go  to  his  office  or  to  his  bed.  In  the  morning 
he  always  walks  to  the  Treasury  Department,  carrying  a  light 
cane,  and  walking  at  a  rapid  pace.  The  distance  is  hardly  a  quar 
ter  of  a  mile.  In  the  afternoon  he  rides  out,  as  is  the  custom  with 
all  the  members  of  the  Cabinet,  before  dinner.  The  evenings  are 
usually  spent  at  home  in  the  society  of  his  wife  and  adopted 
daughter,  who  compose  his  household.  His  home  and  every  thing 
about  him,  his  dress,  his  horses,  etc.,  are  all  plain  and  unostenta 
tious.  And,  although  he  is  reported  to  be  worth  half  a  million  of 
dollars,  his  manner  of  living  is  apparently  as  quiet  and  moder 
ately  expensive  as  when  he  depended  upon  his  annual  salary  alone. 
In  fact,  his  life,  in  its  quietness,  its  dignity,  its  freedom  from 
frivolity,  and  its  careful  economies  of  time  and  strength,  is  more 
like  the  life  of  some  great  private  banker  or  capitalist  than  like  the 
life  of  the  average  American  politician. 

The  following  is  Mr.  Sherman's  account  of  throwing  the 
wafers,  in  a  conversation  reported  for  the  Cincinnati  En 
quirer  : 

"Didn't  you  have  a  fight  once  on  the  floor  of  Con 
gress  with  a  Southern  member?" 


fiu  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

"  The  only  difficulty  of  that  sort  I  had  was  with  a  man  by 
the  name  of  Wright,  from  Tennessee.  He  was  a  man  who 
drank  hard,  and  came  on  the  floor  in  that  condition.  I 
was  making  a  speech  one  day,  and  came  to  the  end  of  a 
sentence,  when  this  man  said,  'That's  a  lie.'  He  was 
some  distance  from  me,  and  I  did  not  hear  it;  but  the  re 
porter  did  hear  it,  and  put  it  down  in  his  transcript,  so  that 
the  next  day  it  appeared  in  the  Globe  newspaper.  This 
made  me  mad,  and  I  arose  on  the  day  following  to  a  ques 
tion  of  privilege.  I  said  that  I  had  not  heard  any  such 
remark  made,  and  presumed  that  the  gentleman  from  Ten 
nessee  who  did  make  it,  as  the  reporter  had  heard  it,  was 
in  such  a  condition  that  he  did  not  know  what  he  was  say 
ing.  At  this  Wright  arose  as  if  to  make  a  reply,  but  his 
colleagues  pulled  him  down.  A  little  while  after  he  came 
around  to  speak  to  some  of  the  Southern  Americans,  or 
Know-Nothings,  wrho  sat  just  around  me.  He  addressed  a 
remark  to  one  of  these,  and  as  he  did  so  looked  at  me  with 
some  insolence.  I  arose  at  once  and  picked  up  a  cup  of 
wafers,  such  as  lay  on  the  desk  of  every  member  at  that 
time,  and  threw  the  contents  in  his  face.  He  had  a  pistol 
at  his  hip,  and  tried  to  draw  it  on  the  floor,  when  he  was 
suppressed  by  the  other  members.  However,  the  incident 
made  a  great  impression  on  the  House,  and  led  to  an  early 
adjournment,  as  there  was  every  expectation  of  a  duel  or 
an  affray.  It  was  known  that  I  was  no  duelist,  but  would 
repel  an  assault.  A  member  from  the  Southern  element 
came  to  me  to  find  out  what  I  meant  to  do.  I  told  him 
that  I  should  repel  any  physical  attack  on  me  with  interest. 
He  then  instructed  me  that  if  the  sequel  of  this  incident 
was  to  be  an  assault  instead  of  a  duel  there  could  be  but 
one  assault — that  the  fight  had  to  begin  and  end  in  a  sin 
gle  encounter.  He  told  me  to  be  ready.  I  got  a  pistol 


IL]  PERSONAL  HISTORY.  61 

and  put  in  my  pocket,  and  I  was  a  good  shot.  I  never 
felt  cooler  in  my  life,  and  I  made  up  my  mind  the  instant- 
Wright  approached  me  with  a  hostile  intention  I  would 
shoot  him  dead.  A  friend  of  mine,  capable  in  such  emer 
gencies,  walked  out  of  the  Capitol  with  me,  and  as  we  de 
scended  the  steps  on  the  side  next  to  the  city,  and  came  to 
the  fountain  which  flows  half  way  down  the  several  flights 
of  steps,  there  I  looked,  and  coming  around  the  other  side 
of  the  fountain  was  Wright,  also  accompanied  by  a  col 
league.  I  walked  toward  him,  looking  him  in  the  eye, 
with  my  hand  on  the  pistol,  fully  determined  to  shoot  him 
if  he  raised  his  hand.  But  he  did  nothing  of  the  kind. 
He  probably  saw  what  was  in  reversion  for  him,  and  I 
went  right  past  him  without  suffering  an  encounter.  He 
afterward  turned  out  a  drunkard,  and  died  a  drunkard. 
The  remarks  passed  on  him  at  home  in  Tennessee  on  ac 
count  of  his  cowardly  behavior  at  that  time  used  him  up." 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  GUILD,  MR.    SHERMAN'S   SPECIALTY. 

SCHLEGEL,  in  the  introduction  to  his  History  of  Philosophy, 
says:  "There  are  five  essential  and  eternal  elements  of  human 
society — the  family,  the  school,  the  guild,  the  church  and 
the  state,"  He  further  says  that  these  are  all  that  are 
essential.  It  can  be  seen  at  a  glance  that  if  the  family, 
which  is  at  the  base  of  all  the  interests  of  society,  and 
grows  out  of  the  strongest  affection  in  man,  be  well  regu 
lated  according  to  the  laiu  of  the  family;  if  the  school, 
comprehending  all  intellectual  development  arid  moral 
training,  be  wrell  conducted;  if  the  guild,  embracing  all 
financial  and  commercial  transactions,  is  upon  a  substan 
tial  and  reliable  basis;  if  the  church,  by  sound  doctrine, 
and  pure  precept,  keep  the  public  conscience  enlightened 
and  sensitive ;  and  if  the  state  resolutely  and  impartially 
punish  all  offenders  against  law  and  right,  so  far  as  to  pro 
tect  every  one  in  the  enjoyment  of  inalienable  rights ;  such 
would  be  a  perfectly  well  regulated  state  of  human  society. 
But  it  can  just  as  readily  be  seen  that  a  material  defect  in 
any  of  these  departments  will  spread  confusion  through  all 
the  rest.  The  evil  results  of  not  maintaining  the  law  of 
the  family,  one  man  and  one  woman,  a  union  for  life,  and 
the  care  of  children  to  a  reasonable  age,  have  been  ex 
perienced  in  our  late  system  of  slavery,  in  the  temporary 
marriage  of  the  Indians,  and  in  the  polygamy  of  Utah. 

(62) 


CHAP,  in.]     THE  GUILD,  MR.  SHERMAN'S  SPECIALTY.     G3 

Without  the  family  there  can  be  no  school,  church,  or 
state,  and  without  the  school  no  family,  guild,  church,  or 
state.  In  truth,  all  are  essential  to  one  another.  Without 
a  well  regulated  guild  none  of  the  others  can  exist,  with 
any  degree  of  perfection,  for  all  depend  somewhat  upon  a 
division  of  labor  and  an  exchange  of  values. 

It  is  a  great  and  all-pervading  law  of  the  Creator,  that 
"no  man  liveth  unto  himself,"  and  that  "in  the  sweat  of 
thy  face  shalt  thou  eat  bread."  These  laws  we  must  obey, 
whether  we  will  or  not.  If  we  would  obtain  what  we  need 
to  eat  we  must  work,  either  in  earning  or  digesting  it;  and 
if  we  would  obtain  all  we  need  we  must  work  for  others. 
Now  if  the  medium  of  exchange  be  of  doubtful  value,  or 
variable,  at  one  time  up  and  at  another  time  down,  no  one 
can  be  sure  that  he  has  what  he  labored  for,  and  thus  dis 
trust  and  uncertainty  will  pervade  every  department  of  life. 

Civil  commotion  of  any  kind,  or  a  sudden  destruction  of 
any  species  of  property,  such  as  occurred  in  our  late  war, 
or  failures  in  business  upon  a  large  scale,  will  of  necessity 
derange  relative  values,  shake  the  confidence  of  the  public, 
and  destroy  motives  to  industry.  Such  a  state  of  things 
we,  as  a  nation,  have  had  a  taste  of  during  and  since  the 
late  war.  The  difficulties  in  the  way  of  adjusting  these 
disturbances  in  the  national  guild,  are  apparent  from  the 
number  of  "rag"  and  other  "babies"  that  have  of  late  been 
dressed  up  and  offered  to  the  public,  as  the  substitute  for  a 
fixed  and  readily  determined  measure  of  values.  Innu 
merable  specifics  have  been  offered.  This  shows  that  either 
from  its  intrinsic  nature,  or  its  environments,  the  subject  is 
an  intricate  one.  It  is  difficult  to  harmonize  the  minds  cf 
men  in  regard  to  the  proper  remedy.  There  is  one  man  in 
this  nation  that  has  studied  this  subject  in  all  its  bearings, 
traced  it  out  in  its  remotest  history,  and  in  its  application 


64  HOX.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

to  different  periods  and  nations,  and  learned  the  causes  of 
the  mistakes  that  have  been  made  in  reference  to  it,  and 
the  remedies  that  have  been  successful.  Nor  has  he  been 
satisfied  with  any  proposed  remedy,  unless  it  were  really 
applicable  to  the  present  circumstances  and  times.  That 
man  is  John  Sherman.  Finance  has  been  his  study,  his 
specialty  during  all  his  long  Congressional  life,  and  to  such 
purpose  has  he  studied,  and  so  clearly  has  he  presented  it  to 
the  minds  of  men,  that  he  has  silenced  opposition,  and 
placed  himself  as  a  financier  on  the  highest  pinnacle  of  the 
temple  of  fame. 

When  the  dark  war-cloud  of  the  rebellion  passed  away, 
it  left  the  United  States  in  a  position  very  different  from 
what  it  was  before.  It  was  nearly  as  different  when  it 
came  out  of  the  war  and  when  it  went  in,  as  the  winged 
insect  is  from  the  groveling  worm  of  the  earth.  The 
country  had  been  altogether  unconscious  of  its  resources  of 
wealth  and  power.  \Vith  a  debt  of  only  some  sixty  mill- 
i.ms,  and  its  bonds  below  par,  how  could  it  fight?  The 
thought  of  spending  a  million  dollars  a  day  was  perfectly 
appalling  to  the  people  of  the  United  States ;  and  when  this 
debt  had  been  rolling  up  for  fourteen  hundred  days,  at  an 
average  expenditure  of  more  than  three  million  dollars  a 
day,  the  question  might  very  naturally  arise,  Who  or  what 
can  help  us  now  ?  So  appalled  was  the  financial  world  at 
the  abyss  of  debt  into  which  we  were  sinking,  that  at  one 
time  a  dollar  of  our  money  was  called  worth  but  about 
thirty-nine  cents  by  other  nations.  Such  being  our  con 
dition,  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  foreign  nations 
began  to  think  the  Grand  Republic  a  failure. 

Then  Jay  Cooke  &  Co.  were  raised  up  to  secure  credit  at 
home ;  Lincoln  to  hold  the  helm  of  State  during  the  tornado 
of  rebellion ;  Stanton  to  guide  the  sinews  of  war;  and  Grant, 


in.]          THE  GUILD,  MR.  SHERMAN'S  SPECIALTY.  65 

Sherman,  Sheridan,  and  Thomas  to  fight  our  battles.  But 
after  the  battle  was  over,  and  the  jubilee  of  victory  rang 
throughout  the  nation,  the  question  arose,  Who  shall  devise 
the  ways  and  the  means  to  redeem  this  immense  credit  of 
62,700,000,000,  thus  pledged  to  save  our  nation? 

It  is  sometimes  easy  to  find  those  who  can  contract  debts, 
but  not  so  to  find  those  possessed  of  the  wisdom  and  patience 
and  perseverance  requisite  to  pay  them.  So  different  are 
the  circumstances  now  from  what  they  ever  have  been  that 
few  precedents  could  be  found  of  any  real  value.  An 
Alexander  Hamilton  could  pilot  us  out  of  a  debt  of  a 
hundred  millions  or  so  that  followed  the  war  of  the  Eevolu- 
tion,  but  who  could  be  found  to  manage  a  debt  of  three 
thousand  millions?  For  this  a  man  of  peculiar  qualifica 
tions,  as  well  as  a  long  course  of  training  was  required,  not 
merely  a  training  in  the  schools,  for  no  school  has  been 
able  to  set  an  example  from  which  to  study  the  finances  of 
this  nation  at  that  time. 

Mr.  Sherman's  first  introduction  to  national  politics  was 
in  1848,  when  he  went  to  Philadelphia  as  a  delegate  to  the 
convention  that  nominated  General  Z.  Taylor  for  the  Pres 
idency.  At  this  convention  Mr.  Sherman  was  one  of  the 
secretaries,  and  Schuyler  Colfax  another.  AVhat  Mr. 
Sherman's  political  principles  were  at  that  time  may  be 
gathered  from  a  speech  made  in  the  Senate  of  the  United 
States,  January  23,  1867.  The  Senate  having  under  con 
sideration  the  bill  to  provide  increased  revenue  from  im 
ports,  Mr.  Sherman  said  : 

:'Mr.  President,  before  the  vote  is  taken  on  the  amend 
ment  of  the  Senator  from  Rhode  Island,  I  think  it  rijrht 
that  I  should  state  the  general  views  which  have  controlled 
my  action  as  a  member  of  the  Committee  on  Finance,  and 
which  will  control  my  vote  on  this  and  the  various  propo- 


G6  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

sitions  of  amendment  that  will  be  submitted  to  the  Senate. 
I  listened  yesterday,  with  great  pleasure,  to  the  speech 
of  my  honorable  friend  from  New  Jersey  (Mr.  Catlett), 
and  was  generally  pleased  with  its  tenor  and  scope.  It 
sounded  like  a  good,  old-fashioned  Whig  protective  speech — 
the  school  in  which  I  was  educated,  the  faith  in  which  I 
was  taught,  and  in  which  I  have  confidence.  But,  sir,  it 
seems  to  me  that  the  Senator  from  New  Jersey,  in  his  zeal 
for  protection,  forgets  that  we  are  now  legislating  under 
peculiar  circumstances,  and  are  compelled  to  look  at  a 
state  of  facts  far  different  fyom  those  that  existed  before 
the  war. 

"In  considering  so  complicated  a  subject  as  a  tariff, 
nothing  can  be  more  deceptive  than  the  application  of  such 
general  phrases  as  a  '  protective  tariff.'  Every  law  pro 
posing  a  duty  on  imported  goods  is  necessarily  a  restraint 
on  trade.  It  imposes  a  burden  upon  the  purchase  and  sale 
of  imported  goods,  and  tends  to  prevent  their  importation. 
The  expression  a  '  free  trade  tariff'  involves  an  absurdity. 
Free  trade  implies  a  trade  without  restriction,  while  any 
tariff  is  a  restriction  on  trade." 

Mr.  Sherman's  advent  into  political  life  occurred  at  an 
important  juncture  in  the  history  of  the  old  Whig  high 
protective  tariff  doctrine.  Up  to  this  time  a  protective 
tariff  had  been  regarded  as  a  settled  principle  of  govern 
ment,  as  unalterable  as  "the  laws  of  the  Medes  and 
Persians."  But  General  Taylor,  who,  the  Mexicans  said, 
"did  not  know  when  he  was  whipped"  (and  he  certainly 
never  intended  to  find  out),  in  his  L-tter  of  acceptance  of 
the  nomination  of  the  Presidency,  taught  the  Whigs  that 
protection  is  not  a  principle,  and  should  not  be  so  regarded, 
but  simply  a  measure  of  expediency,  and  temporary  in  its 
character.  This  view  was  adopted  as  a  new  departure  by 


in.]          THE  GUILD,  MR.  SHERMAN'S  SPECIALTY.  G7 

the  Whigs.  The  writer,  at  that  time,  conversed  with  the 
Hon.  Thomas  Ewing,  of  this  State,  and  Ex-Governor  Les 
lie  Combs,  of  Kentucky,  both  of  whom  approved  of  this 
view,  and  wondered  they  had  not  seen  it  before.  They 
perceived  that  a  protective  tariff  should  be  resorted  to  sim 
ply  and  only  to  develop  the  capabilities  of  the  nation,  upon 
the  principle  that  a  man  might  spend  on  his  farm  this  year 
more  than  he  produces,  in  order  to  produce  much  more 
than  he  expends  next  year.  But  when  once  that  point  is 
reached,  the  cheaper  production  will  protect  itself.  Such 
is  the  result  of  protection  in  past  years.  Now,  American 
manufactures  and  productions  can  compete  with  all,  for 
the  best  markets  in  the  world.  This  modified  doctrine  of 
protection  came  into  vogue  the  very  year  in  which  Mr. 
Sherman  entered  politics.  In  the  speech  already  quoted 
from,  this  thoroughly  common-sense  view  of  a  tariff  stands 
out  in  bold  relief.  Mr.  Sherman  proceeds  to  say: 

"The  first  tariff  act,  passed  soon  after  the  foundation  of 
the  Constitution,  was  called  a  '  protective  tariff.'  One  of 
its  leading  objects,  as  declared  by  Washington,  was  to  fos 
ter  and  protect  American  manufacturers,  and  yet  the  gen 
eral  rate  of  duties  was  but  ten  per  cent,  ad  valorem.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  tariff  of  1846  is  commonly  known  as  a 
'  free  trade  tariff/  and  yet  the  rate  of  duty  levied  by  it  av 
eraged  twenty-four  and  a  half  per  cent.  Every  duty  on 
imported  merchandise  gives  to  the  domestic  manufacturer 
an  advantage  equal  to  the  duty,  and  to  that  extent  every 
tariff  is  a  protective  tariff.  When  the  duty  is  so  high  as 
to  prevent  importation,  it  ceases  to  be  a  'tariff,'  and  be 
comes  a  *  commercial  regulation.'  So  the  general  term  a 
*  revenue  tariff,'  as  descriptive  of  a  tariff,  is  deceptive,  and  is 
simply  tautology.  Every  tariff  bill  is  a  '  revenue  tariff.' 
The  word  'tariff'  implies  revenue,  and  means  a  rate  of  tax- 


OS  IIOX.  JOHN  SHKIIMAX. 

tition  on  imported  goods.  It  is  simply  a  mode  of  taxation 
adopted  by  all  commercial  nations  as  the  most  certain,  con 
venient,  and  least  expensive  form  of  taxation.  The  com 
mon  meaning  attached  to  the  phrase  'revenue  tariff'  is  a 
general  ad  valorem  tax  on  imported  goods,  without  regard 
to  domestic  manufacture.  Such  a  tariff  has  never  existed 
in  any  commercial  country,  least  of  all  in  Great  Britain, 
where  the  duties  are  carefully  levied  to  encourage  their 
own  manufactures.  They  do  not  now  levy  duties  on  man 
ufactures,  for  the  same  reason  that  we  do  not  on  anthracite 
coal.  By  a  vast  accumulation  of  capital,  and  by  severe 
commercial  restriction,  maintained  for  one  hundred  years, 
they  have,  a  substantial  monopoly  of  certain  important 
branches  of  industry.  They  do  not  levy  duty  on  such 
goods,  because  none  are  imported  into  Great  Britain,  and 
the  tariff  on  them  would  produce  as  little  revenue  as  your 
duty  on  anthracite  coal." 

Here  is  presented,  in  concrete,  a  full  commentary  on  the 
Whig  doctrine  of  1848:  "  Lay  a  tariff  when  it  will  be  ben 
eficial,  and  abolish  it  when  it  ceases  to  be  so."  The  above 
was  said  in  1867.  Of  course,  the  necessities  that  grew  out 
of  the  war  caused  an  adjournment,  sine  die,  of  the  question 
of  a  protective  tariff  purely,  and  rendered  necessary  a 
tariff  for  revenue,  and,  if  for  revenue,  it  must  incidentally 
"protect,"  unless  laid  upon  articles  such  as  we  can  not 
produce. 

While  Mr.  Sherman's  study  and  thought  during  his 
whole  course  in  Congress  was  the  protection  of  the  national 
guild,  and  caused  him,  as  soon  as  he  entered  the  Senate, 
to  be  placed  on  the  Finance  Committee,  yet,  when  the 
blast  of  war  sounded,  it  stirred  his  patriotic  heart  to  the 
very  core.  The  following  account  will  show  how  this  feel 
ing  showed  itself,  and  how  near  he  c.ime  missing  the  call- 


in.]          TT-IK  (IUTLI),  Mil.  SHERMAN'S  SPECIALTY.  (jy 

ing  for  which  Providence  had  certainly  raised  him  up. 
Courage  was  not  wanting,  for  we  shall  follow  him  through 
one,  event  that  required  a  higher  order  of  courage  than  is 
commonly  called  for  on  the  field  of  brittle. 

After  the  proclamation  of  President  Lincoln,  Colonel 
McLaughl in's  company  of  cavalry  was  raised  in  Mansfield, 
and  the  first  and  second  regiments  were  rapidly  formed,  or 
ganized  and  dispatched  to  the  East.  Senator  Sherman 
met  them  at  Harrisburg,  and  remained  with  them  until 
the  meeting  of  the.  Senate,  on  the  Fourth  of  July.  They 
were  drilled  and  disciplined  at  Philadelphia,  and  thence 
proceeded,  by  way  of  Harrisburg  to  Hagerstown  and  the 
line  of  the  Potomac.  Early  in  these  movements  Mr.  Sher 
man  tendered  his  services  to  General  Patterson,  who  was 
placed  in  command  of  the  forces  gathering  in  Pennsylva 
nia,  and  was  appointed  by  him  volunteer  aid,  and  served 
in  that  capacity  until  required  to  attend  the  session  of  the 
Senate,  when  he  resigned.  He  was  at  Washington  during 
the  battle  of  Bull  Run,  and,  on  the  adjournment  of  Con 
gress,  went  home,  strongly  impressed  with  the  importance 
of  entering  the  military  service  himself,  and  inducing  others 
to  do  so. 

•As  a  large  number  of  regiments  were  then  being  organ 
ized,  he  formed  the  purpose  to  recruit,  arm,  and  equip  a 
brigade  at  Mansfield,  but  postponed  it  until  the  day  after 
the  fall  election. 

Mr.  Sherman,  then  in  connection  with  General  R. 
Brinkerhoff,  whose  valuable  services  he  first  secured  to  as 
sist  him,  organized  the  Sherman  Brigade.  General  Brink 
erhoff  took  the  laborious  and  responsible  position  of  quar 
termaster,  one  of  the  most  important  offices  in  recruiting  a 
force,  and  remained  with  it,  rendering  efficient  service  for 
five  vears. 


70  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP.  in. 

By  the  1st  of  December,  Mr.  Sherman  had  at  Camp 
Buckingham,  in  Mansfield,  two  regiments  of  infantry,  one 
battery  of  artillery,  and  one  squadron  of  cavalry,  com 
pletely  officered,  armed,  and  equipped.  He  then  returned 
to  Washington,  leaving  this  force  under  the  command  of 
General  Robert  S.  Granger,  intending,  at  some  subsequent 
time,  to  join  them.  But,  upon  his  arrival  at  Washington, 
he  was  dissuaded  from  his  purpose  of  resigning  his  seat  in 
the  Senate,  not  only  by  several  Senators,  but  by  President 
Lincoln  and  Secretary  Chase,  personally.  Mr.  Sherman 
was,  at  that  time,  a  member  of  the  Finance  Committee  of 
the  Senate,  and  it  became  apparent  that  the  struggle  was 
to  be  one,  not  only  of  arms,  but  of  the  sinews  of  war;  and 
he  at  once,  in  connection  with  Mr.  Fessenden,  devoted 
himself  almost  exclusively  to  questions  of  taxation  and  cur 
rency,  and  in  which,  from  the  first,  he  took  the  very 
active  part,  which  this  whole  narrative  will  abundantly 
show.  In  this  way  the  General  was  lost,  but  the  Financier 
saved. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

MR.  SHERMAN'S  ELECTION  TO  CONGRESS. 

As  was  mentioned  in  an  earlier  part  of  this  work,  Mr. 
Sherman's  taste  was  for  political  life.  We  leave  him  here 
as  a  plodding  lawyer,  for  nearly  a  decade.  There  was 
not  the  least  prospect  of  his  ever  being  elected  to  the 
slightest  office.  He  had  no  hope  of  'it  himself.  This 
county  and  all  surrounding  counties  were  hopelessly  Dem 
ocratic,  and  he  was  incorrigibly  Whig.  So  that  the  idea 
of  political  preferment  was  not  entertained  by  him. 

In  1854  the  slave-holding  South  had  so  far  encroached 
upon  the  freedom-loving  North,  and  in  May  of  that  year 
took  so  decisive  a  step  towards  revolutionizing  the  whole 
.North,  that  even  Democratic  old  Kichland  waked  up  and 
determined  to  bear  it  no  longer.  It  will  be  borne  in  mind 
that  in  1850,  what  was  called  the  fugitive  slave  law  had 
been  passed,  which  forbade  the  harboring  of  slaves  or  feed 
ing  them  ;  and,  moreover,  put  it  in  the  power  of  the  mar 
shal  to  call  upon  citizens  to  aid  in  recapturing  them. 
Heavy  penalties  were  imposed  for  refusing  to  aid  in  their 
recapture,  or  for  assisting  them  to  escape.  This  was 
really  a  Whig  measure,  and  was  in  the  main  sustained  by 
the  Whigs.  But  it  sat  heavily  on  the  conscience  of  both 
political  parties.  Many  of  the  Democrats  bolted,  and 
formed  what  was  called  the  Free  Soil  party.  These  and 
the  disaffected  Whigs  coalesced,  and  afterwards  formed  the 

(711 


72  HON.  JOHN  SHEHMAX.  [CHAP. 

*i 

Republican  party.  As  yet,  however,  it  was  weak.  But 
another  step  was  taken  by  the  imperious  South,  that  at 
once  aroused  the  spirit  and  patriotism  of  the  Whigs  almost 
universally,  and  secured  a  large  accession  from  the  Demo 
crats  to  the  Free  Soil  party.  The  North  had  rested  in 
comparative  quietness  respecting  the  extension  of  slavery, 
because  it  was  thought  slavery  could  not  be  carried  North 
of  latitude  36°  30',  agreeably  to  the  Missouri  Compromise, 
made  at  the  admission  of  that  State  to  the  Union  in  1820. 
Missouri  was  admitted  on  this  condition,  and  without  it, 
could  not  have  been  admitted  as  a  slave-holding  State.  It 
was  supposed  by  the  whole  North  that  such  a  compact  or 
compromise  was  inviolable.  The  faith  of  the  whole  South 
was  pledged  to  observe  it,  and  the  existence  of  Missouri 
was  a  token  and  monument- of  that  pledge.  One  was  sup 
posed  to  be  as  irrepealable  as  the  other. 

This  being  so,  slavery  being  limited  to  the  territory 
south  of  36°  30',  and  the  territory  on  that  side  of  the  line 
being  much  less  in  extent  than  that  in  the  North,  Free 
State  politicians  felt  comparatively  easy  as  to  the  result. 
The  slave  power  would  soon  be  overwhelmed  by  the  pre 
ponderance  of  the  free  Northern  States.  But  the  very 
considerations  that  quieted  the  North  aroused  the  appre 
hensions  of  the  South.  Slaves  were  rapidly  increasing, 
(doubling  in  about  twenty-eight  years)  the  soil  in  the  old 
slave  States  becoming  worn  out  by  hard  usage,  and  new 
territory  open  to  slavery  becoming  rapidly  diminished, 
slave  property  was  likely  to  become  impaired  in  value,  and 
the  political  power  of  slave  States  to  fade  away.  Some 
thing  must  be  done  to  arrest  this  tendency  or  the  slave 
power  is  doomed.  So  both  sides  felt.  The  one  was  ani 
mated  with  hope  and  the  other  was  stung  with  apprehen 
sion. 


iv.]  MR.  SHERMAN'S  ELECTION  TO  CONGRESS.  73 

The  feeling  North  and  South  i'rora  1850  to  1854  was 
very  much  as  it  is  now  between  1876  and  1880.  The  con 
flict  then  was  very  analogous  to  what  it  is  nowr.  The  South 
politically  in  the  ascendency,  and  using  their  power,  as  the 
slave-holder  did  the  lash — keeping  covenant  while  conven 
ient,  violating  it  if  interest  required — very  much  as  they 
do  now. 

After  enacting  the  fugitive  slave  law  in  1850,  the  Whigs, 
as  a  party,  were  disposed  faithfully  to  observe  its  condi 
tions,  and  the  courts  enforced  them  with  almost  merciless 
severity.  But  the  South  required  more  than  this.  It  was 
not  easy  to  catch  slaves  against  the  consciences  of  the  free. 
Many  in  the  North  were  in  a  most  trying  position,  as  to 
whether  duty  required  them  to  assist  the  slaves  to  gain 
their  freedom  or  to  submit  to  the  "  powers  that  be,"  and 
obey  the  law.  Some  would  talk  one  way  and  argue,  but 
act  the  other  way.  The  following  is  a  fair  example  of  the 
way  the  fugitive  slave  law  was  observed  in  Ohio: 

In  Circleville  was  what  was  understood  to  be  a  station 
on  the  underground  railroad — i.  e.,  the  line  for  the  escape 
of  slaves  from  the  South,  Joseph  Dodridge,  Esq. ,  one  of 
the  nobles  of  the  earth,  who  feared  God  rather  than  man, 
was  understood  to  be  the  station-master — i.  e. ,  the  man  to 
call  on  for  help  when  fugitives  arrived  in  the  vicinity.  He 
had  a  neighbor  who  was  an  ardent  supporter  of  the  consti 
tutional  guaranty  that  the  rights  of  slave-holders  should 
be  respected.  One  day  word  was  brought  to  Mr.  Dodridgo 
that  a  colored  passenger  wanted  his  ticket.  The  message 
was  overheard  by  his  pro-slavery  neighbor,  and  both  re 
paired  to  the  depot — i.  e.,  a  retired  spot  in  the  forest.  The 
negro  saw  the  two  white  men,  and  kept  dark,  waiting  for 
the  countersign.  Mr.  Dodridge  kept  concealed  for  fear  of 
being  arrested  by  his  neighbor.  Both  skulked  for  a  while. 


74  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

Finally  Mr.  Dodridge  came  out  and  said  to  his  pro-slavery 
neighbor,  "  What  are  you  here  for  ? "  Said  he,  "  What  are 
you  here  for?"  "To  feed  this  colored  man,"  said  Mr. 
Dodridge.  "So  am  I,"  said  the  other.  So  it  was  often 
that  the  impulses  of  humanity  and  the  Savior's  golden  rule 
overcame  constitutional  scruples,  and  the  negro  was  helped 
on  his  way  to  the  free  North. 

But  the  history  of  slavery  in  this  country  has  taught 
statesmen  one  grand  lesson,  viz:  that  the  conscience  of  the 
nation  can  not  be  long  stifled  by  legislative  compromises. 
The  only  safe  rule  is:  "  Jiistitia  fiat,  mat  coelum."  The  peo 
ple  of  the  Southern  States  would  better  understand  it 
now  than  to  learn  it  later  by  bitter  experience,  that  the 
colored  man  must  and  will  have  his  rights  and  the  rewards 
of  his  labor. 

Still  it  may  be  in  this,  as  it  was  in  1854,  that  the  evil 
is  to  be  cured  by  its  own  development.  This  is  a  widely 
pervading  law  of  Divine  Providence.  Says  Kurtz:  "The 
development  of  evil  is  its  cure  "  Slave-holders  could  not 
be  satisfied  that  their  "domestic  institution"  should  be 
restricted  to  its  present  limits,  and  the  national  conscience 
was  not  willing  it  should  be  extended.  But  "  the  iniquity 
of  the  Amorites  was  not  yet  full."  The  slave  power  was 
in  the  ascendency,  and  demanded  a  wider  field. 

By  the  Missouri  Compromise  it  was  provided  "that  in 
all  the  territory  ceded  by  France  to  the  United  States 
under  the  name  of  Louisiana,  north  of  36°  30',  excepting 
only  such  part  thereof  as  is  included  within  the  limits  of 
the  State  (Missouri)  contemplated  by  this  act,  slavery  and 
involuntary  servitude,  otherwise  than  in  the  punishment 
of  crime,  whereof  the  parties  shall  have  been  duly  con 
victed,  shall  be  and  is  hereby  forever  prohibited."  When 
the  question  came  up  for  the  organization  of  a  territorial 


IV.]          MR.  SHERMAN'S  ELECTION  TO  CONGRESS.  75 

government  for  Kansas,  the  politicians  were  very  adroit, 
and  put  Nebraska  with  it,  .saying,  Kansas  will  become  a 
slave  State,  and  Nebraska  a  free  State,  still  preserving  the 
same  relative  strength,  North  and  South,  as  heretofore. 
But  the  conscience  of  the  North  could  not  consent  that 
slavery  should  be  extended  at  all ;  and  the  rapacity  of  the 
South  began  to  demand  that  it  should  not  be  limited  at  all. 
The  North  had  the  advantage  in  argument  (as  the  right 
generally  has).  The  Missouri  Compromise  did  not  say 
there  should  be  no  free  States  south  of  36°  30',  but  did  say 
there  should  be  no  slave  States  north  of  that  line.  This, 
Southern  politicians  said,  is  not  equal.  It  restricts  slavery, 
but  not  freedom.  Repeal  the  Missouri  Compromise,  and 
then  both  are  upon  an  equality.  What!  exclaims  the 
united  North.  Repeal  that  Compromise  !  Never.  It  is  a 
contract,  and  must  stand  forever.  The  word  forever  is  a 
part  of  it,  and  the  admission  of  Missouri  into  the  Union, 
another  part  of  it,  and  that  can  not  be  repealed,  nor  can 
this  be  rightly  done.  But  the  then  majority  in  Congress 
(May,  1854)  said  it  shall  be  repealed  in  these  words.  In 
section  fourteen  of  the  act  then  passed,  organizing  the 
territories  of  Kansas  and  Nebraska,  it  was  declared  that 
the  Constitution  and  all  the  laws  of  the  United  States 
should  be  in  force  in  those  territories,  except  the  Missouri 
Compromise  act  of  1820,  "  which  is  hereby  declared  in 
operative  and  void."  This  showed  at  once  the  fallacy  of  all 
national  compromises,  and  did,  in  the  minds  and  actions  of 
many,  annul  the  effect  of  the  fugitive  slave  law.  It 
demonstrated  that  the  South  can  be  trusted  just  as  tar  as 
interest  goes,  and  no  farther. 

While  the  slave  power  was  thus  persistently  active,  the 
free  North  was  not  wholly  idle.  About  a  month  before 
this  act  was  repealed,  the  Legislature  of  Massachusetts  had 


76  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

incorporated  the  Massachusetts  Emigrant  Aid  Company, 
for  the  purpose  of  assisting  emigrants  to  settle  in  the  new 
territories,  by  giving  them  useful  information,  procuring 
them  cheap  passage  over  railroads,  and  by  establishing 
mills  and  other  conveniences,  at  central  points  in  the  new 
settlements,  In  July  the  Legislature  of  Connecticut 
granted  a  charter  to  a  similar  company.  A  large  emigra 
tion  into  Kansas,  from  the  north-western  States,  had 
already  taken  place,  and  emigrants,  in  considerable  num 
bers,  from  the  free  States,  and  a  few  from  the  slave  States, 
now  availed  themselves  of  the  opportunities  of  cheap  trans 
portation  offered  by  these  companies,  to  settle  in  Kansas. 
It  had  been  argued  in  favor  of  repealing  the  compromise — - 
let  the  territory  be  open  to  all  on  both  sides  of  the  line; 
slave-holders  to  take  their  slaves  where  they  pleased,  and 
free  labor  to  go  where  it  pleased.  It  was  now  the  pleasure 
of  free  labor  to  emigrate  to  Kansas.  But  let  us  see  the 
kind  of  liberty  permitted  to  the  free-soil  advocates.  On 
July  29th,  1854,  a  public  meeting,  called  by  the  "Platte 
County  Defensive  Association,"  was  held  at  Weston,  Mis 
souri,  and  resolutions  were  adopted  declaring  that  the  asso 
ciation  would  hold  itself  in  readiness,  whenever  called  upon 
by  the  citizens  of  Kansas,  "  to  assist  in  removing  any,  and 
all  emigrants,  who  go  there  under  the  auspices  of  Northern 
Emigrant  Aid  Societies."  These  resolutions  were  pub 
lished,  signed  by  B.  F.  Stringfellow,  Secretary,  and  G. 
Galloway,  President.  On  August  12th,  another  meeting 
was  held  at  AVeston,  at  which  resolutions  were  adopted,  de 
claring  in  favor  of  the  extention  of  slavery"  into  Kansas. 

From  such  beginnings  as  these,  the  excitement  became 
intense  all  through  the  country,  and  revolutionized  the 
politics  of  Richland  county,  Ohio,  and  its  environs.  The 
remarks  of  Mr.  Elliot,  of  Massachusetts,  in  Congress,  upon 


IY.]          MR.  SHERMAN'S  ELECTION  TO  CONGRESS.  77 

the  Kansas  and  Nebraska  bill,  on  the  10th  of  May,  1854, 
were  literally  true.  Mr.  Elliot  paid : 

"  Mr.  Chairman,  the  popular  voice  has  been  pronouncing 
judgment  on  this  bill  while  we  have  been  discussing  its 
claims  and  demerits.  It  is  beginning  to  be  understood  that 
the  writing  will  come,  and  in  advance  of  the  record  we 
have  from  every  side  that  truth  of  history,  '  Whom  the 
gods  would  destroy,  they  first  make  mad.'"  This  bill  was 
passed  in  May,  and  in  October  John  Sherman  was  elected 
to  represent  his  district,  in  the  Thirty-fourth  Congress, 
which  began  its  first  session  on  the  3d  of  December,  1855. 

The  circumstances  that  attended  Mr.  Sherman's  election 
to  Congress  are  worthy  of  being  recorded,  as  showing  the 
leadings  of  Providence,  in  raising  up  the  man  that  was  to 
pilot  us  through  all  the  mazes  of  our  financial  labyrinth. 

The  district  that  elected  him  was  at  that  time  composed 
of  Richland,  Morrow,  Huron,  and  Erie  counties.  It  was 
so  arranged  by  a  Democratic  legislature,  in  order  that  the 
heavy  Democratic  majorities  of  Richland  and  Morrow 
might  overcome  the  Whig  majorities  in  Huron  and  Erie, 
and  thus  insure  a  Democratic  Representative  in  Congress. 
The  scheme  served  their  purpose  the  first  time,  but  en 
trapped  its  authors  the  next.  So  it  commonly  turns  out. 
Whichever  party  deviates  from  the  right,  and  plots  what  is 
wrong,  and  unfair,  is  sure,  sooner  or  later,  to  reap  the  bitter 
fruits  of  it.  Here,  let  an  old  man,  who  has  never  taken  an 
active  part  in  politics,  but  as  a  lover  of  his  country,  has 
been  an  interested  looker-on,  and  a  voter,  for  more  than 
fifty  years,  say  to  all  politicians,  there  is  nothing  gained 
in  the  end,  by  gerrymandering,  as  it  is  called.  It  is  a  kind 
of  plot  that  sooner  or  later  returns  to  plague  the  inventor. 
To  gain  the  desired  end,  calculations  must  be  made  so 
exact  that  a  trifle  may  turn  the  scale  on  the  other  side. 


73  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

The  safest  and  best  way  is  to  be  just  and  fair.  It  ought  to 
be  remembered  that  God  claims  the  right  to  govern  this 
world,  and  the  United  States  are  a  part  of  it,  and  the 
selfish  schemes  of  men  will  never  prosper  in  the  end. 

So  in  this  case.  At  the  election  in  1852,  the  first  year 
of  Mr.  Pierce's  administration,  Mr.  Lindsey  was  elected  as 
a  thorough -going  Democrat  from  Erie  county.  He  was  a 
respectable  and  an  enterprising  farmer,  but  without  educa 
tion,  and  at  his  time  of  life,  without  the  mental  capacity 
and  flexibility  to  acquire  one.  He  also  lacked  the  shrewd 
ness  and  tact  necessary  to  be  a  scheming  politician.  Ac 
cordingly,  the  Democrats  were  poorly  represented  in  the 
Thirty-third  Congress. 

In  1854,  in  the  stirring  times  referred  to  above,  when 
the  fugitive  slave-law  had  about  killed  off  the  Whig  party, 
and  squatter  sovereignty  shook  the  Democratic  party,  the 
Free-soil  party  was  rising  in  importance.  Mr.  Lindsey  was 
nominated  for  a  second  term,  or  was  seeking  the  nomina 
tion  ;  but  not  being  skilled  in  political  chicanery,  while  he 
claimed  to  favor  free-soil  in  public,  he  wrote  a  letter  that 
he  would  vote,  if  elected,  with  Douglas  for  the  repeal  of 
the  Missouri  Compromise.  This  killed  him  as  a  politician. 

In  the  opposition  were  four  candidates  for  the  nomina 
tion — J.  M.  Root,  of  Sandusky,  and  Thomas  Ford,  Jacob 
Brinkerhoff,  and  John  Sherman,  of  Mansfield.  When 
Ford  found  he  was  not  likely  to  get  the  nomination,  he 
exerted  himself  for  Sherman.  Morrow  county  went  solid 
for  Sherman,  and  then  Kichland,  with  members  from  Hu 
ron  and  Erie,  so  that  he  was  nominated  by  the  opponents 
of  slavery  extension,  afrenvards  crystallized  into  the  Repub 
lican  party,  at  the  Pittsburgh  Convention  of  1856,  and  tri 
umphantly  elected. 

Mr.  Sherman,  while   bitterly  opposed  to  the  extension 


iv.]          MK.  SHERMAN'S  ELECTION  TO  CONGRESS.  79 

of  slavery  into  any  new  territory,  occupied  conservative 
ground,  as  will  be  seen  by  a  resolution  offered  by  him  on 
the  opening  of  the  second  session  of  the  Thirty-sixth  Con 
gress.  His  position  came  near  defeating  his  election.  At 
one  time  the  question  was  put  to  him  in  Huron  county 
whether  he  would  vote  for  the  abolition  of  slavery  in  the 
District  of  Columbia.  He  frankly  said,  No;  he  should' 
oppose  its  extension,  but  not  interfere  where  it  is.  His 
very  frankness  disarmed  prejudice,  and  procured  for  him 
an  almost  unanimous  vote  in  that  place.  Since  that,  he 
has  become  opposed  to  slavery  every-where  and  anywhere. 
In  1855,  Mr.  Sherman  first  took  his  seat  in  Congress  as  a 
member  of  the  House  of  Representatives.  This  was  his 
first  introduction  to  public  life,  and  it  occurred  amidst 
one  of  those  political  storms  that  preceded  the  slave-hold 
ers'  war.  It  will  be  remembered  that  in  the  opening  of  the 
Thirty-fourth  Congress  there  was  a  long  contest  for  Speaker. 
The  parties  were  so  nearly  balanced  that  there  was  serious 
difficulty  in  electing  any  one.  William  A.  Richardson,  of 
Illinois,  and  L.  D.  Campbell,  of  Ohio,  were  at  first  leading 
candidates.  After  the  twenty-third  vote,  L.  D.  Campbell 
rose  and  withdrew.  Then  the  contest  was  between  Rich 
ardson  and  N.  P.  Banks,  Jr.,  and  proceeded  to  the  one 
hundred  and  twenty-ninth  ballot,  on  February  1st,  when  a 
plurality  resolution  was  passed,  as  follows:  "Mr.  Samuel 
A.  Smith,  of  Virginia,  submitted  the  following  resolution, 
viz :  Resolved,  That  the  House  will  proceed  immediately  to 
the  election  of  a  Speaker,  viva  voce.  If,  after  the  roll  shall 
have  been  called  three  times,  no  member  shall  have  re 
ceived  a  majority  of  all  the  votes  cast,  the  roll  shall  again 
be  called,  and  the  member  who  shall  then  receive  the 
largest  number  of  votes,  provided  it  be  a  majority  of  a 
quorum,  shall  be  declared  duly  elected  Speaker  of  the 


80  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

House    of    Representatives    of    the    Thirty-fourth    Con 
gress/' 

This  resolution  was  passed,  and  on  February  2d,  "  the 
House  proceeded  to  vote  the  one  hundred  and  thirty-third 
time,  viva  voce,  for  Speaker,  being  the  fourth  vote  under 
the  plurality  resolution  this  day  adopted."  It  appeared 
then  that  N.  P.  Banks,  Jr.,  had  one  hundred  and  three 
votes,  out  of  two  hundred  and  fourteen,  and  the  highest 
number  of  any  one  voted  for,  and  was  declared  elected, 
afterwards  by  a  vote  of  156  to  40.  After  passing  a  vote 
of  thanks  to  John  W.  Forney,  for  presiding  over  the 
House  "during  the  arduous  and  protracted  contest  for 
Speaker,  the  House  adjourned  to  the  following  Monday." 
What  was  Mr.  Sherman  doing  during  his  first  session  ?  Was 
he  idle?  Not  at  all.  To  learn  what  he  was  doing,  we  have 
only  to  look  at  a  speech  he  delivered  in  the  Senate,  De 
cember  17th,  1872,  on  the  subject  of  the  French  Spoliation 
Claims.  The  bill  to  provide  for  their  adjustment  being  be 
fore  the  Senate,  Mr.  Sherman  said  r  "  Mr.  President — My 
acquaintance  with  tne  French  spoliation  bill  commenced 
with  my  entrance  into  the  House  of  Representatives  in  the 
winter  of  1855-'56,  when,  being  a  member  of  the  Commit 
tee  on  Foreign  Affairs,  this  old  and  interesting  class  of 
claims  was  handed  to  me  for  investigation.  At  that  time 
my  mind  was  entirely  unbiased  upon  the  subject.  The  ex 
amination  of  the  claims  opened  an  interesting  portion  of 
the  American  history,  and  without  much  to  do,  I  entered 
upon  it,  reading  nearly  all  the  public  documents  then 
already  accumulated  in  great  numbers  of  volumes.  I  in 
formed  myself  in  regard  to  all  the  points  that  had  been 
made  in  the  discussions  of  the  question.  After  this  ex 
amination  I  became  entirely  convinced  that  there  was  no 
ground,  either  in  law  or  equity,  why  these  claims  ought  to 


iv.j          MR.  SHERMAN'S  ELECTION  TO  CONGRESS.  81 

be  paid  by  the  United  States.  From  that  time  to  this, 
they  have  rested  without  any  definite  action,  by  either 
House  of  Congress.  Now  they  are  pressed  with  a  confi 
dent  expectation  of  payment,  and  it  becomes  my  duty, 
without  much  time  for  preparation,  to  give  the  reasons  for 
my  conviction  why  they  ought  not  to  be  paid." 

Then,  after  reviewing  the  case,  he  proceeds  to  expose 
the.  iniquitous  scheme,  by  which  it  was  attempted  to  extort 
from  the  Government  an  acknowledgment  of  this  claim  ; 
that  an  organized  agency  had  been  in  operation  forty-nine 
years  for  this  purpose,  and  says:  "All  these  are  consider 
ations  which  ought  not  to  prevent  us  from  paying  this  ob 
ligation,  if  it  is  just  and  honest.  If  it  is  right  in  law  and 
equity  that  the  United  States  should  pay  it,  I  do  not  object 
to  the  means  by  which  it  is  urged  -upon  Congress,  nor  to 
the  lapse  of  time."  He  then  presents  the  reasons  why 
these  claims  should  not  be  paid,  on  the  ground  of  equity, 
by  the  laws  of  war,  and  international  obligations. 

This  is  introduced  here  to  show — 1.  How  Mr.  Sherman 
was  employing  himself  during  his  first  session  in  Congress; 
that  he  was  a  faithful  and  industrious  student.  2.  How  thor 
oughly  his  memory  served  him.  Here  was  an  intricate 
question  examined  by  him  in  1855-'56,  that  did  not  come 
up  till  sixteen  years  afterwards  for  discussion,  and  his 
memory  served  his  purpose.  3.  How  terse  and  forcible 
his  arguments  are.  In  the  second  paragraph  are  no  less 
than  six  arguments,  and  in  the  next  three  more,  before  he 
intimates  to  us  that  he  is  arguing  at  all.  4.  It  would  ap 
pear  that  this  discussion  of  the  spoliation  claims  was  the 
last  of  them,  just  as  his  discussion  of  a  protective  tariff  in 
1867  settled  that  for  all  time. 

But  Mr.  Sherman  was  not  permitted  to  devote  all  this 
stormy  Congress  to  the  study  of  old  questions.  He  was 


82  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

put  in  the  front  rank  of  what  came  near  being  the  great 
fight  of  the  age,  and  was  in  truth  its  beginning.  On  the 
19th  of  May,  18f>6,  it  was  "Resolved,  That  a  committee 
of  three  members  of  this  House,  to  be  appointed  by  the 
Speaker,  shall  proceed  to  inquire  into  and  collect  evidence 
in  regard  to  the  troubles  in  Kansas  generally,  and  partic 
ularly  with  reference  to  any  fraud  or  force  attempted  or 
practiced  in  reference  to  any  elections  which  have  taken 
place  in  said  territory,  either  under  the  law  organizing 
said  territory,  or  under  any  pretended  law  which  may  be 
alleged  to  have  taken  effect  therein  since."  To  show  the 
hazard  in  which  that  committee  might  be  placed,  it  was 
"  Resolved  further,  That  the  President  of  the  United  States 
be,  and  is  hereby  requested  to  furnish  to  said  committee, 
should  they  be  met  with  any  serious  opposition  by  bodies 
of  lawless  men,  in  the  discharge  of  their  duties  aforesaid, 
such  aid  from  any  such  military  force,  as  may  at  the  time 
be  convenient  to  them,  as  may  be  necessary  to  remove  such 
opposition,  and  enable  said  committee,  without  molestation, 
to  proceed  with  their  labor."  The  committee  first  ap 
pointed  was  composed  of  Mr.  L.  D.  Campbell,  of  Ohio ; 
Mr.  Win.  A.  Howard,  of  Michigan;  and  Mr.  Mordecai 
Oliver,  of  Missouri;  but  Mr.  Campbell  declined,  and  Mr. 
John  Sherman  was  put  in  his  place. 

Mr.  Sherman  was  put  on  this  committee  because  he  was 
fresh  from  the  practice  of  law,  and  skilled  in  examining  wit 
nesses  and  in  weighing  testimony.  Mr.  Howard  was  nom 
inally  the  chairman,  but  being  in  poor  health,  and  Mr. 
Oliver  in  the  minority,  Mr.  Sherman  had  the  work  to  do, 
and  the  majority  report  to  make.  This  he  wrote  with  his 
owrn  hand,  and  the  manuscript  is  now  in  Mansfield. 

Here,  then,  was  our  Representative,  young  in  years  and 
young  in  legislative  experience,  thrust  into  the  hottest  of 


iv.]          MR.  SHERMAN'S  ELECTION  TO  CONGRESS. 

the  fight,  in  the  stormiest  Congress  that  had  ever  met. 
Mr.  Sherman  performed  his  part  so  admirably,  with  such 
discrimination,  intelligence,  thoroughness,  and  courage,  as 
to  place  him  ever  after  among  the  most  prominent  defend 
ers  of  law  and  liberty.  The  majority  report  in  part  was  • 
"  Every  election  has  been  controlled,  not  by  actual  settlers, 
but  by  citizens  of  Missouri,  and  as  a  consequence,  every 
officer  in  the  territory,  from  constable  to  legislator,  ex 
cept  those  appointed  by  the  President,  owes  his  position 
to  non-resident  voters.  None  have  been  elected  by  the 
settlers  ;  and  your  committee  have  been  unable  to  find  that 
any  political  power  whatever  has  been  exercised  by  the 
people."  Hence  the  majority  of  that  committee  were  per 
sons  against  whom  the  bitterest  hostility  of  the  South  was 
to  be  expected.  But  the  election  of  a  Speaker  was  not  the 
end  of  the  trouble  for  this  session.  It  was  only  the  begin 
ning.  The  balance  of  parties,  Republican  and  Democrat, 
was  so  nearly  even,  that  a  Speaker  could  not  be  elected 
otherwise  than  by  a  plurality  vote.  There  were  more  un 
yielding  Whigs  than  straight-out  pro-slavery  men,  but  not 
enough  to  carry  an  election  in  the  House  over  the  South 
and  all.  A  few  extracts  from  the  journal  of  the  House  of 
Representatives  of  the  Thirty -fourth  Congress  will  show  the 
spirit  that  prevailed. 

On  page  368,  part  I,  is  a  message  from  the  President  of 
the  United  States  to  the  following  effect,  which  was  ordered 
to  be  read  by  a  vote  of  108  to  87 : 

11  To  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives: — Circum 
stances  have  occurred  to  disturb  the  course  of  governmental 
organization  in  the  territory  of  Kansas,  and  produce  there 
a  condition  of  things  which  renders  it  incumbent  on  me  to 
call  your  attention  to  the  subject,  and  urgently  recommend 
the  adoption  by  you  of  such  measures  of  legislation  as  the 


S4  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

grave  exigencies  of  the  case  appear  to  require.  Its  out 
lines  are  as  follows: — The  act  to  organize  the  territories  of 
Kansas  and  Nebraska,  allowing  the  people  to  organize  their 
own  domestic  affairs  without  regard  to  the  Missouri  Com 
promise ;  and  that  every  free  ivliite  male  resident,  twenty- 
one  years  of  age  should  be  a  voter."  Nebraska  organized 
peacefully  under  this,  but  in  Kansas  there  was  a  conflict 
between  the  free  North  and  slave-holding  South,  and  to  put 
an  end  to  this  conflict  or  allow  the  people  to  fight  it  out 
among  themselves  he  recommends  the  admission  of  Kansas 
into  the  Union. 

On  the  19th  of  May,  1856,  Mr.  Galloway  read  the  fol 
lowing  resolutions:  "That  the  President  of  the  United 
States  be  requested  to  inform  the  House,  whether  he  has 
any  information,  official  or  otherwise,  of  the  murder  of 
three  American  citizens  (Dow,  Barber,  and  Brown)  resid 
ing  in  the  territory  of  Kansas  ;  whether  any  legal  steps 
have  been  taken  by  the  United  States  district  attorney,  or 
any  other  officer,  for  the  legal  investigation  thereof,  and 
the  prosecution  of  the  murderers  ;  also,  whether  he  has  any 
information  in  regard  to  the  forcible  abduction  of  Wm. 
Phillips,  an  American  citizen,  residing  in  the  territory  of 
Kansas,  and  of  his  being  carried  across  to  the  State  of 
Missouri,  and  there  tarred  and  feathered ;  and  whether 
any  steps  have  been  taken  by  the  officers  of  the  United 
States  in  that  territory,  for  the  prosecution  of  the  persons 
engaged  in  such  outrages;  also,  whether  he  has  any  in 
formation  in  regard  to  the  tarring  and  feathering,  at  the 
town  of  Atchison,  in  said  territory,  on  the  30th  of  April 
last,  of  the  Rev.  Pardee  Butler,  a  Methodist  minister,  and 
a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  residing  in  said  territory  of 
Kansas,  and  whether  any  steps  have  been  taken,  by  the 
United  States  officers  in  that  territory,  for  the  prosecution 


iv.]         MR.  SHERMAN'S  ELECTION  TO  CONGRESS.  85 

of  persons  engaged  in  said  outrage;  also,  whether  he  has 
any  information  in  regard  to  the  shooting  of  a  Mr.  Mace, 
with  attempt  to  kill,  after  he  had  given  testimony  before 
the  investigating  commission  of  this  House ;  also,  whether 
he  has  any  information  in  regard  to  the  murderer  or  mur 
derers  of  Sheriff  Jones." 

These  being  allusions  to  facts  well  established  as  hav 
ing  occurred,  and  but  a  small  part  of  what  actually  did 
occur. 

But  the  murderous  spirit  that  trampled  down  political 
rights,  and  with  bowie-knife  and  rifle  attempted  to  force 
slavery  upon  the  fair  fields  of  Kansas,  found  its  counter 
part  in  the  capitol  of  the  nation.  Senator  Sumner  was 
brutally  knocked  down  on  the  floor  of  the  Senate  and 
beaten  till  he  was  senseless,  with  a  cane,  by  Preston  S. 
Brooks,  for  an  unanswerable  argument  made  by  him 
against  slavery,  and  the  House  asserted  its  right  to  punish 
the  perpetrator.  Lawrence  M.  Keitt,  of  South  Carolina, 
was  also  reprimanded  for  watching  and  seeing  it  done. 
He  resigned,  but  was  re-elected  and  came  back.  An- 
other  member  was  reprimanded  for  killing  a  servant  at 
a  hotel. 

August  18th,  Mr.  Simmons  submitted  another  resolu 
tion,  which  was  read,  considered  and  agreed  to,  viz:  "to 
appoint  a  committee  to  investigate  the  alleged  assault  of 
Payette  McMullen,  of  Virginia,  on  Amos  P.  Granger,  of 
New  York."  At  one  time  the  whole  House  came  near  get* 
ting  into  a  fight,  and  probably  the  Southern  members 
would  have  seceded  and  begun  the  war  of  the  rebellion 
five  years  sooner,  but  Barkdale's  wig  came  off,  and  set  the 
whole  House  into  a  roar  of  laughter,  which  destroyed  the 
appetite  for  fighting. 

The  first  session  of  the  Thirty-fourth  Congress  adjourned 


86  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP, 

on  the  18th  of  August,  and  President  Pierce  called  a 
meeting  on  the  21st  of  the  same  month,  in  extra  session, 
The  reason  of  this  call  was  the  failure  to  make  appropria 
tions  for  the  army.  The  cause  of  said  failure  was  this: 
The  Senate  had  passed  the  bill  in  the  usual  form.  The 
House  attached  a  rider,  that  no  part  of  the  appropriation 
should  be  used  for  a  certain  purpose  in  Kansas.  To  this 
rider  the  Senate  objected,  and  the  bill  failed. 

There  was  a  wide  difference  between  the  rider  proposed 
by  the  Republicans  in  1856,  and  that  proposed  by  the 
Democrats,  causing  an  extra  session  in  1879.  In  1856  the 
proposed  rider  was,  that  none  of  the  money  should  be  used 
to  enforce  laws  passed  for  Kansas,  by  the  inhabitants,  until 
they  were  declared  to  be  laws,  either  by  the  General  Govern 
ment^  or  by  Kansas  itself.  In  1879  the  rider  was  to  pro 
hibit  the  use  of  the  army,  and  to  appoint  marshals  to 
enforce  United  States  laws.  The  former  rider,  in  the  shape 
of  a  proviso,  was  to  prohibit  the  use  of  the  army  for  an 
unLawfid  purpose,  and  the  latter  for  a  lawful.  The  former 
asserted  the  power  of  Congress  over  the  matter  in  question ; 
the  latter  denied  it. 

The  House  adhered  to  its  proviso  from  August  21st  to 
August  30th,  but  the  Senate  was  firm. 

Mr.  Sherman  was  once  put  on  a  committee  of  confer 
ence,  but  the  pro-slavery  interest  in  the  Senate  was  too 
strong  to  be  moved.  At  last  the  House  yielded — backed 
down — as  the  North  ever  did  before  the  war.  But  in  the 
final  vote  Mr.  Sherman  is  recorded  in  the  negative.  Any 
one  who  knows  the  Secretary,  the  strength  of  his  will,  and 
his  loyalty  to  truth  and  right,  after  all  he  had  seen  and 
heard  in  Kansas,  would  understand  that  he  could  never 
have  voted  to  strike  out  this  amendment,  viz:  "That  no 
part  of  the  military  force  of  the  United  States,  for  the  sup- 


iv.]          MR.  SHERMAN'S  ELECTION  TO  CONGRESS.  87 

port  of  which  appropriations  are  made  by  this  act,  shall 
be  employed  in  aid  of  the  enforcement  of  any  enactment 
heretofore  passed,  of  the  bodies  claiming  to  be  the  Territo 
rial  Legislature  of  Kansas." 


CHAPTER  V. 

MR.    SHERMAN    IJi  THE   THIRTY -FIFTH    CONGRESS. 

IN  looking  through  the  Congressional  Globe  it  will  be 
seen  that  up  to  the  28th  of  January,  1858,  Mr.  Sherman 
was  on  the  floor  eighteen  times,  and  each  time  to  rectify 
some  disorder  in  the  mode  of  doing  business,  or  to  correct 
something  that  was  likely  to  go  wrong,  so  watchful  was  he 
of  our  national  finances.  On  the  28th  he  obtained  the 
floor  and  proceeded  to  address  the  House  upon  the  affairs 
of  Kansas.  This  was  a  subject  that  he  had  thoroughly 
studied  and  knew  whereof  he  spoke : 

4 'Mr.  Chairman,  it  is  with  some  reluctance  that  I  rise 
to  speak,  to  a  question  not  now  directly  before  the  House. 
But,  sir,  I  know  that  the  Lecompton  Constitution  will 
soon  be  presented,  and  that  an  earnest  effort  will  be  made 
to  admit  Kansas  into  the  Union  under  it,  I  avail  myself, 
for  the  first  time,  of  the  laxity  of  the  rules  in  the  com 
mittee,  to  state  my  opinion  on  that  subject.  Another 
reason  why  I  engage  in  this  debate  is,  that  I  have  received 
from  the  Governor  of  Ohio,  the  resolution  of  the  Legisla 
ture  of  that  State,  requesting  me,  as  one  of  the  Represen 
tatives,  '  to  vote  against  the  admission  of  Kansas  into  the 
Union  under  the  Lecompton  or  any  other  constitution  that 
has  not  proceeded  from  the  people,  by  a  clear  delegation 
of  power  to  adopt  the  constitution,  without  a  further  sane- 


CHAP,  v.]        IN  THE  THIRTY-FIFTH  CONGRESS.  89 

tion  of  the  people,  or  which  has  not  been  submitted  to  and 
approved  by  the  people.' 

"  This  request  is  entirely  consistent  with  my  sense  of 
duty,  with  the  wishes  of  the  Republican  party,  and  the 

general  sentiment  of  the  people  of  my  native  State 

There  have  been  so  many  irritating  incidents  connected 
with  Kansas,  from  its  organization  as  a  territory,  that  it  is 
difficult  to  discuss  any  question  relating  to  it  with  due 
moderation  and  temper.  We  have  been  compelled  as  leg 
islators,  again  and  again,  to  examine  the  disgraceful  events 
which  compose  its  history.  Though  these  were  for  a  time 
disputed,  few  among  us  would  risk  their  reputation  by  do 
ing  so  now.  The  irritation  of  the  past  is  increased  rather 
than  diminished  by  the  application  now  made  to  admit 
Kansas  into  the  Union  as  a  slave  State,  against  the  recent 
vote  and  known  will  of  a  large  majority  of  her  people." 

Mr.  Sherman  then  proceeds  to  review  at  length  the  his 
tory  of  "  bleeding  Kansas"  as  he  found  it  in  1856,  and  as 
it  still  continued  to  be,  and  concluded  with  the  following 
solemn  warning  (which  will  suit  very  Well  for  these  times), 
evincing  the  determined  spirit  that  has  come  down  through 
seven  generations  of  the  Shermans,  and  six  of  the  Stod- 
dards : 

"  In  conclusion,  allow  me  to  impress  the  South  with  two 
important  warnings  she  has  received  in  her  struggle  for 
Kansas.  One  is,  that  though  her  able  and  disciplined  lead 
ers  on  this  floor,  aided  by  executive  patronage,  may  give 
her  the  power  to  overthrow  legislative  compacts,  yet,  while 
the  sturdy  integrity  of  Northern  masses  stands  in  her  way, 
she  can  gain  no  practical  advantage  by  her  well-laid 
schemes.  The  other  is,  that  while  she  may  indulge,  with 
impunity,  the  spirit  of  filibusterism,  or  lawless  and  violent 
adventure,  upon  a  feeble  and  distracted  people  in  Mexico 

8 


90  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

and  Central  America,  she  must  not  come  in  contact  with 
that  cool  and  determined  courage  and  resolution  which 
form  the  striking  characteristics  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race. 
In  such  a  contest,  her  hasty  and  impetuous  violence  may 
succeed  for  a  time,  but  the  victory  will  be  short-lived  and 
transient,  and  leave  nothing  but  bitterness  behind.  Let 
us  not  war  with  each  other,  but  with  the  grasp  of  fellow 
ship  and  friendship,  regarding  to  the  full  extent  each 
other's  rights,  and  kind  to  each  other's  faults,  let  us  go 
hand  in  hand  in  securing  to  every  portion  of  our  people 
their  constitutional  rights." 

Mr.  Sherman's  end  and  aim  are,  both  in  speech  and 
action,  to  secure  what  is  right  first,  then  what  is  best  and 
safest.  This  able  and  fearless  speech  gave  him  a  high 
rank  as  a  legislator. 

On  the  first  of  March,  Mr.  Sherman  offered  a  resolution 
to  ascertain  "  if  any  money  had  been  paid  out  during  the 
previous  year  for  the  expenses  of  any  legislature,  or  alleged 
legislature  of  Kansas;  and  if  so,  by  what  authority."  He 
began  even  then  to  keep  an  eye  upon  the  funds,  to  see 
where  they  went  to,  and  what  became  of  them. 

Mr.  Sherman  made  several  unsuccessful  efforts  to  have 
a  committee  appointed  to  provide  for  taking  the  census  of 
1860.  There  was  quite  a  disposition  to  stave  it  off.  "It 
was  put  over  at  the  last  census,"  said  the  Speaker.  "  Yes, 
sir,"  said  Mr.  Sherman,  "  and  not  only  that,  but  I  under 
stood,  by  the  delay  in  passing  that  bill,  the  Government 
lost  nearly  half  a  million  of  dollars.  It  is  merely  to  save 
expense  that  I  now  propose  to  introduce  this  proposition." 
Finance  again. 

Here  is  another  instance  of  Mr.  Sherman's  love  of  order. 
A  bill  was  proposed  to  relieve  an  officer  who  was  in  a  state 
of  quasi  suspension,  because  of  a  deficiency  in  his  accounts. 


v.]  IN  THE  THIRTY-FIFTH  CONGRESS.  91 

Mr.  Sherman  said:  "  I  insist  on  my  motion,  that  the  bill  be 
referred  to  a  Committee  of  the  Whole  House.  I  have  no 
particular  objection  to  the  bill,  but  if  we  permit  bills  to  be 
put  upon  their  passage,  as  soon  as  reported,  we  shall  in 
volve  ourselves  in  difficulty."  Again  Mr.  Sherman  objects 
to  the  irregularity  of  committees  having  their  reports 
printed  before  they  are  authorized  to  do  so. 

On  the  loth  of  May,  1858,  is  an  incident  showing  the 
watchfulness  of  Mr.  Sherman  over  the  Treasury,  which 
may  have  suggested  to  him  the  necessity  of  the  great  work 
of  this  Congress  upon  which  he  afterwards  entered.  It 
appears  to  have  become  customary  to  pay  some  of  the 
clerks  of  pursers  in  the  navy-yards  fifty  per  cent,  more 
than  the  salary  allowed  by  law.  A  proposition  was  made 
to  legalize  it. 

MR.  SHERMAN. — "I  understand  the  effect  of  this 
amendment  to  be  to  raise  the  salaries  of  these  clerks  from 
$500  to  $750." 

MR.  MILLSON. — "  The  effect  is  to  continue  their  salaries 
as  they  have  received  them  since  1854." 

MR.  SHERMAN. — "But  which  they  have  received  in 
violation  of  law.  I  am  willing  that  they  should  not  be 
compelled  to  refund  what  they  have  received.  I  under 
stand  that  the  department  decided  that  this  $250  should 
be  paid  them,  and  I  am  not  willing  they  should  suffer  for 
the  mistakes  of  the  department,  but  I  want  the  salary  to 
remain  in  the  future  at  $500." 

It  will  always  be  seen,  by  looking  through  the  Congres 
sional  Globe,  that  there  was  in  him  a  kind  of  instinct  or 
habit,  principle  or  disposition,  whatever  it  may  be  called, 
to  watch  the  smallest  leak  in  the  Treasury.  With  bin* 
every  thing  must  be  according  to  law.  This  can  not  be 
attributed  to  any  selfish  or  political  motive ;  for  being  in  the 


92  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAX.  [CHAP. 

minority  he  would  not  regard  himself  or  his  party  as  par 
ticularly  responsible  for  illegal  expenditures.  But  his  de 
termination  was,  that  whatever  is  right  should  be  done,  and 
whatever  is  wrong  should  not  be  done. 

On  the  6th  of  April  a  bill  was  before  the  House  to 
supply  deficiencies  in  the  appropriations : 

MR.  SHERMAN.  —  "Mr.  Chairman,  I  am  not  disposed  to 
cavil  at  appropriations  demanded  by  the  necessities  of  the 
country.  I  think  it  is  the  duty  of  Congress,  however, 
carefully  to  guard  their  appropriations  from  misapplication, 
and  limit  them  strictly  to  the  necessary  expenses  of  the 
Government.  In  my  judgment  our  Government  has  de 
parted  from  its  original  policy  in  the  appropriation  of  money 
more  than  in  any  thing  else.  And  one  objection  I  have 
to  this  side  of  the  House,  as  a  political  party,  is  that  we 
have  been  too  free  in  the  expenditure  of  money."  [Mr. 
Sherman  lectures  friends  as  well  as  foes.]  "  We  have 
yielded  too  much  to  the  demands  of  the  Administration. 
We  were  at  fault,  I  think,  in  the  last  Congress,  in  not 
watching  more  carefully  and  restricting  the  expenditure  of 
the  Government." 

Notice,  again,  Mr.  Sherman's  demand  for  order  and  regu 
larity,  and  intelligence  in  appropriations.  He  says:  "It 
is  idle  to  look  on  the  face  of  the  bill  for  information.  I 
find  that  in  one  clause  of  the  bill  they  have  included  all 
sorts  of  items — for  transportation  of  the  army,  including 
baggage ;  for  sailing-vessels  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and 
upon  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific;  for  procuring  water,  etc. 
They  have  included,  I  do  not  know  how  many  items ;  but 
they  have  lumped  them  all  together,  and  appropriated  for 
them  $5,400,000.  Now,  I  want  to  know  the  amount  of 
each  item.  According  to  the  original  policy  of  the  Govern 
ment,  the  amount  of  each  item  was  given  in  such  bills  as 


v.j  JK  THE  THIRTY-FIFTH  CONGRESS.  93 

this." — "Now sir,  a  few  words  in  reference  to  the  third  sec 
tion  of  this  bill.  This  third  section  appropriates  money  in 
accordance  with  resolutions  of  the  last  Congress,  which,  in  my 
opinion,  were  contrary  to  law.  I  believe  the  last  House  of 
Representatives,  in  voting  extra  pay  to  its  various  officers, 
violated  an  act  of  Congress.  I  believe  that  these  resolu 
tions,  passed  at  the  heel  of  the  last  session,  have  not  the 
authority  of  law,  and  are  wrong  in  principle,  and,  there 
fore,  I  will  no  more  vote  to  sanction  what  I  regard  as  a 
breach  of  law,  -by  either  House  of  Congress,  than  I  will 
vote  to  sanction  a  breach  of  law  by  executive  officers.  This 
House  has  no  power  to  appropriate  money  except  from  its 
contingent  fund.  It  has  no  power  to  say  that  anj  man 
shall  have  extra  pay.  There  is  a  law  of  Congress  which 
expressly  forbids  it,  and,  therefore,  I  do  not  consider 
myself  bound  to  vote  for  it.  I  know  it  is  said  these 
men  are  worthy  officers ;  I  admit  it.  At  the  same  time, 
I  think  all  these  claims  should  be  passed  in  the  ordinary 
way." 

On  the  9th  of  June,  Mr.  Sherman  said,  on  the  naval 
appropriation  bill:  "Now,  it  seems  to  me  that  when  the 
treasury  is  bankrupt,  it  is  a  bad  time  to  appropriate  $50,000 
to  fill  up  ground  which,  in  the  opinion  of  many  gentlemen 
connected  with  the  Brooklyn  Navy-yard,  is  totally  unneces 
sary." 

On  the  Gth  of  June,  1859,  an  appropriation  bill  being 
under  consideration,  Mr.  Sherman  said:  "The  explanation 
of  the  gentleman  is  not  satisfactory  to  me.  He  may  have 
given  good  reasons  why  the  House,  at  the  last  session, 
should  have  appropriated  this  $111,000  for  the  purpose 
named  in  the  bill,  but  if  any  Indian  agent  in  Oregon  has 
used  that  sum,  or  any  other  sum  of  money,  for  the  purposes 
named  in  this  bill,  without  authority  of  law,  he  did  what 


94  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

he  should  not  have  done,  whatever  might  have  been  the 
consequences. 

"  It  is  proposed  to  legalize  what  the  gentleman  presumes 
has  been  done.  The  appropriation  is  based  upon  the  idea 
that  the  agent  in  Oregon  has  incurred  a  liability.  How 
incurred  a  liability?  He  had  no  right  to  incur  it.  He 
had  no  right  to  incur  a  dollar  of  expense  until  Congress 
had  appropriated  the  money  by  law;  and  I  desire  to 
say,  that  I  will  make  a  point  whenever  I  can,  in  order 
to  put  a  stop  to  the  assumption  of  power  not  authorized 
by  law. 

"  If  you  pass  this  bill,  inserting  this  proviso,  you  will 
indorse  a  clear  violation  of  law.  I  do  not"  desire  to  make 
the  point,  as  to  the  amount  expended  for  these  Indians,  but 
that  money  shall  not  be  expended  in  violation  of  law,  and 
in  defiance  of  appropriations." 

Mr.  Sherman,  in  the  Thirty-fifth  Congress,  the  first  two 
years  of  Buchanan's  Presidency,  was  situated,  in  one  re 
spect,  at  a  great  disadvantage,  as  it  did  not  fully  indicate 
his  ability  as  a  legislator  and  a  financier.  In  another  re 
spect,  he  was  favorably  situated  for  learning  thoroughly 
the  lessons  he  was  afterward  to  reduce  to  practice.  He 
had  shown,  in  the  investigation  of  the  abuses  in  Kansas, 
an  ability  to  ferret  out  political  corruption  and  wrong-do 
ing,  and  search  them  to  the  bottom.  In  the  speech  that 
he  made  in  Committee  of  the  Whole,  on  the  6th  of  Jan 
uary,  1858,  quoted  above,  in  part,  he  showed  that  there 
was  no  foe,  in  or  out  of  Congress,  •  that  he  was  afraid  to 
meet.  He  took  the  well-ascertained  and  indisputable  facts 
he  had  learned  in  Kansas,  and  so  logically  and  forcibly 
were  they  arranged,  and  fearlessly  presented,  and  yet  so 
courteously  and  kindly,  that  no  offense  could  be  taken.  On 
this  account  it  was  thought  discreet  for  the  opposition  to 


V.]  IN  THE  THIRTY-FIFTH  CONGRESS.  95 

have  as  little  as  might  be  to  do  with  the  young  man  from 
Ohio. 

Nor  was  he  less  keen  to  detect  than  he  was  fearless  to 
condemn  wrong-doing,  and  resolute  to  expose  it,  whether 
in  his  own  or  the  opposite  party,  as  the  above  notes  of  his 
remarks  and  extracts  from  his  speeches  abundantly  show. 
From  the  quotations  above,  as  well  as  from  what  we  learn 
of  his  private  life,  three  traits  are  especially  prominent  in 
his  Congressional  life : 

1.  Order.     Every  thing  must  be  in  order.     If  the  order 
said  a  bill  must  be  reported  on  by  a  committee,  no  exi 
gency  could  induce  him  to  depart  from  it.     "The  fences 
must  all  be  kept  up."     We  shall  see  the  full  benefit  of  this 
trait  when  we  come  to  find  him  Chairman  of  the  Commit 
tee  of  Ways  and  Means  in  the  next  Congress. 

2.  Legal  requirements  and  forms  must  be  obeyed.     A 
resolution  of  Congress  can  never  contravene  a  law.    Every 
official  must  be  paid  his  salary,  and  any  thing  more  is  in 
violation  of  law.     Money  can  only  be  appropriated  by  Con 
gress  according  to  law. 

3.  Moral  rectitude  is  held  in  the  highest  reverence.    This, 
in  fact,  is  the  order  of  all  his  arguments.     For  or  against 
the  enactment  of  laws.  Mr.  Sherman's  first  inquiry  invariably 
is,  whether  it  be  right  or  not ;  next,  is  it  according  to  law  and 
the  Constitution  ;  third,  is  it  in  order ;  and,  last,  is  it  a  dic 
tate  of  common   sense.      These  were  the  sentiments  that 
prompted  every  act  of  his  life ;  and  their  fearless  advocacy 
caused  him  to  be  respected  and  feared.     Nor  did  he  ever 
lose  his  self-respect,  or  the  respect  of  others,  by  any  undue 
excitement.     When  Barkdale's  wig  was  pulled  off,  it  was 
not  done  by  John  Sherman.     He  was  always  cool  and  col 
lected.     These  qualities  secured  him  an  elevated  position, 
before  the  close  of  his  second  term  in  Congress.     The  dis- 


%  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

advantage  he  labored  under  was,  that  he  was  in  the  minor 
ity,  and  because  of  his  ability,  he  was  to  be  kept  as  far  in 
the  background  as  possible.  For  this  reason,  probably,  he 
was  put  down  the  sixth  member  of  the  Committee  on  Na 
val  Affairs.  It  might  be  supposed  that  this  would  be  about 
the  last  to  be  heard  of  John  Sherman  during  that  Con 
gress  ;  that  the  other  party  would  be  safe  from  the  criti 
cism  of  the  man  who  brought  back  such  an  "evil  report" 
from  Kansas.  But  the  Speaker,  if  such  were  his  inten 
tions,  failed  to  attain  his  end.  Mr.  Sherman  not  only  held 
the  majority  with  bit  and  bridle,  through  the  two  sessions 
of  the  Thirty-fifth  Congress,  but  in  regard  to  the  navy,  won 
the  greatest  laurels.  As  in  the  Thirty-fourth  Congress,- 
his  being  put  on  the  Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs  led 
him  so  to  study  the  subject  of  the  French  Spoliation 
Claims,  as  afterwards  to  set  it  finally  at  rest,  so  now  the 
study  of  naval  affairs  led  him  so  to  study  that  subject  as  to 
make  some  discoveries  that  were  so  astonishing,  as  to  place 
him  very  near  the  crest  of  a  tidal  wave  of  Congressional 
fame. 

The  manner  in  which  this  was  brought  about  will  appear 
from  the  following  record  in  the  Congressional  Globe,  for  the 
Thirty-fifth  Congress,  second  session : 

NAVY   YARD    CHARGES. 

"MR.  SHERMAN,  of  Ohio. — Mr.  Speaker,  I  have  received 
from  D.  B.  Allen,  a  citizen  of  New  York,  of  the  highest 
standing  and  character,  a  Avritten  communication,  making 
specific  and  detailed  charges  against  certain  civil  officers  in 
the  navy  department,  which,  if  true,  would  justify  impeach 
ment.  I  have  also  received  a  letter  from  a  member  of  this 
House,  stating  that,  as  a  matter  of  common  occurrence, 
certain  officers  in  the  Navy-yard,  at  Brooklyn,  have  sold 


v.]  IN  THE  THIRTY-FIFTH  CONGRESS.  97 

employment  and  offices  in  that  yard.  I  have  been  shown 
affidavits  and  certificates  of  workmen  which,  if  true,  would 
prove  this  charge  to  be  well  founded.  My  attention  has 
been  called  to  a  printed  statement  in  a  Philadelphia  paper, 
containing  somewhat  similar  charges  in  regard  to  the  Navy- 
yard  at  Philadelphia,  and  to  contracts  in  that  city.  I, 
therefore,  am  compelled,  by  a  sense  of  duty,  to  ask  the 
unanimous  consent  of  the  House,  to  offer  the  following 
resolution, " 

The  clerk  read  the  resolution,  as  follows:  "WHEREAS 
D.  B.  Allen,  a  citizen  of  the  State  of  New  York,  specifically 
charges  that  certain  officers  in  the  navy  department,  in 
awarding  contracts  for  the  construction  of  vessels  of  war 
of  the  United  States,  have  been  guilty  of  partiality,  and  of 
violation  of  law  and  of  public  duty;  and,  whereas,  grave 
charges  have  been  made,  that  money  appropriated  for 
navy-yards,  and  for  the  repair  of  vessels  of  the  United 
States  has  been  expended  for  partisan  purposes,  and  not 
for  purposes  provided  by  law.  Therefore, 

"Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  five  members  be  ap 
pointed  to  examine,  1.  Into  the  specifications  and  bids  for, 
and  the  terms  of  the  contract  for  the  work  and  labor  done, 
or  materials  furnished,  for  the  vessels  of  the  United  States, 
constructed  or  in  the  process  of  construction  or  repair  by 
the  United  States,  since  the  fourth  day  of  March,  1857, 
and  the  mode  and  manner  of  awarding  such  contracts,  and 
the  inducements  and  recommendations  influencing  said 
awards.  2.  Into  the  mode  and  manner  in  which,  and  the 
purpose  for  which,  the  money  appropriated  for  the  navy- 
and  dock-yards,  and  for  the  repair  and  increase  of  vessels, 
has  been  expended.  That  said  committee  have  power  to 
send  for  persons  and  papers,  and  have  leave  to  report  by 
bill  or  otherwise." 


98  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAX.  [CHAP. 

This  committee  was  appointed,  and  being  a  select,  not  the 
standing  committee  on  naval  affairs,  of  which  Mr.  Bocock, 
of  Virginia,  was  chairman,  the  Speaker  must  of  necessity 
appoint  Mr.  Sherman  the  chairman.  Still  Mr.  Bocock 
was  appointed  on  this  select  committee,  and  other  strong 
men  in  sympathy  with  the  majority  of  the  House.  It  was 
an  immense  work  and  very  thoroughly  done.  The  report 
fills  a  large  volume.  The  committee  was  appointed  on  the 
18th  of  January  and  reported  on  the  24th  of  February. 
Here  is  a  volume  of  a  thousand  pages  or  more,  the  material 
of  which  was  collected  and  all  written  out,  and  presented  to 
Congress  in  thirty-six  days.  That  man's  work  was  tre 
mendous.  Mr.  Bocock  presented  the  report  of  the  majority 
and  Mr.  Sherman  that  of  the  minority.  As  this  was  a  case 
in  which  the  party  then  in  power  was  on  trial  before  the 
country,  in  order  that  both  sides  may  be  fairly  laid  before 
the  reader,  the  resolutions  accompanying  the  reports  are 
both  here  inserted. 

The  following  are  the  resolutions  accompanying  the 
report  of  the  majority  of  the  committee,  made  •  by  Mr. 
Bocock : 

'  •  Resolved,  That  the  testimony  taken  in  this  investigation 
proves  the  existence  of  glaring  abuses  in  the  Brooklyn 
Navy-yard,  and  as  such  require  the  interposition  of  legis 
lative  reform  ;  but  it  is  due  to  justice  to  declare  that  these 
abuses  have  been  slowly  and  gradually  growing  up  during 
a  long  course  of  years,  and  that  no  particular  administra 
tion  should  bear  the  entire  blame  therefor. 

u  Resolved,  That  it  is  disclosed  by  the  testimony  in  this 
case  that  the  agency  for  the  purchase  of  Anthracite  coal, 
for  the  use  of  the  navy,  lias  been  for  some  time  past,  in  the 
hands  of  a  person  wholly  indifferent  and  grossly  incom 
petent,  and  that  reform  is  needed  in  the  regulations  which 


V.J  IN  THE  THIRTY-FIFTH  CONGRESS.  90 

exist  on  that  subject,  but  there  is  no  proof  which  traces 
any  knowledge  of  such  inefficiency  and  iiicompetency  to  the 
responsible  authorities  in  Washington,  nor  any  which  shows 
that  the  need  of  reform  grows  especially  out  of  any  act  of 
theirs;  but  it  is  expressly  proven  that  the  supply  of  coal  for 
the  naval  service  has  been  purchased,  during  this  administra 
tion,  upon  terms  relatively  as  favorable  as  ever  heretofore. 

"  Resolved,  That  while  we  could  never  sanction  or  approve 
of  any  arrangement  on  the  part  of  an  officer  of  the  Govern 
ment  which,  under  the  pretense  of  making  contracts  for 
supplies,  was  designed  to  confer  special  and  exclusive  favor 
on  individuals,  yet  in  the  contract  entered  into  in  Septem 
ber,  1858,  between  the  navy  department  and  W.  C.  N. 
Swift,  for  the  supply  of  live  oak  to  said  department,  it  is 
clearly  proven  by  the  testimony  that,  if  the  Secretary  of 
the  Navy  did  contemplate  any  favor  to  the  said  Swift,  he 
did  not  design  to  bestow  it  to  the  detriment  of  the  Govern 
ment,  but  that  in  all  he  did  in  this  matter  "he  kept  always 
in  view7  the  good  of  the  public  and  the  interests  of  the 
service. 

"Resolved,  That  in  the  letting  of  contracts  for  the  con 
struction  of  steam  machinery  for  the  vessels  of  the  navy, 
during  the  present  administration,  nothing  has  been  shown 
which  calls  for  the  interposition  of  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States;  but  it  is  manifest  that  the  present  head  of 
the  Navy  Department  has  displayed  a  very  laudable  zeal 
to  secure  the  greatest  amount  of  speed  and  efficiency  attain 
able  for  said  vessels. 

"  Resolved,  That  nothing  has  been  proven  in  this  investi 
gation  which  impeaches  in  any  way  the  personal  or  official 
integrity  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy." 

This  report  of  the  majority  of  that  committee  was  an 
attempt  to  cover  up  the  disloyalty  of  an  officer  of  the 


100  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP, 

Government,  who  was  at  that  very  time  doing  his  utmost 
to  put  the  navy  in  a  condition,  such  that  it  could  not  be 
used  to  prevent  the  rebellion. 

The  following  are  the  resolutions  accompanying  the  re 
port  of  the  minority  of  the  committee,  presented  by  Mr. 
Sherman,  of  Ohio : 

"Resolved,  That  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  has,  with 
the  sanction  of  the  President,  abused  his  discretionary 
power  in  the  selection  of  a  coal  agent,  and  in  the  purchase 
of  fuel  for  the  Government. 

"Re-solved,  That  the  contract  made  by  the  Secretary  of 
the  Navy,  under  the  date  of  September  23,  1858,  with 
AV.  C.  N.  Swift,  for  the  delivery  of  live-oak  timber,  was 
made  in  violation  of  law,  and  in  a  manner  unusual,  im 
proper,  and  injurious  to  the  public  service. 

"Resolved,  That  the  distribution  by  the  Secretary  of  the 
Navy  of  the  patronage  in  the  Navy-yard  at  Brooklyn, 
among  members  of  Congress,  was  destructive  of  discipline, 
corrupting  in  its  influence,  and  highly  injurious  to  the  pub 
lic  service. 

"Resolved,  That  the  President  and  Secretary  of  the 
Navy,  by  receiving  and  considering  the  party  relations  of 
bidders  for  contracts  with  the  United  States,  and  the  effects 
of  awarding  contracts  upon  pending  elections,  have  set  an 
example  dangerous  to  the  public  safety,  and  deserving  the 
reproof  of  this  House. 

"Resolved,  That  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  in  the  ap 
pointment  of  Daniel  B.  Martin,  chief  engineer,  as  a  mem 
ber  of  the  Board  of  Engineers,  to  report  upon  proposals  for 
contracting  machinery  for  the  United  States,  the  said  Mar 
tin,  at  the  time,  being  peculiarly  interested  in  some  of 
said  proposals,  is  hereby  censured  by  this  House." 

Let  the  reader  pause  here  and  take  in  a  full  view  of  the 


V.]  IX  THE  THIRTY-FIFTH  X' 

majesty  of  the  scene  here  presented:  *  &&' the  oife  ^aiid ' 
was  President  Buchanan,  a  Cabinet  plotting  the  destruc 
tion  of  the  Government  if  it  were  likely  to  be  rescued  from 
the  control  of  slave-holders,  the  Kansas  troubles  not  yet 
settled,  a  Congress  at  the  beck  and  nod  of  the  President, 
and  the  majority  of  his  own  committee  ready  to  smooth 
over  the  reeking  corruptions  of  those  in  power,  as  though  it 
were  no  serious  matter  for  public  officials  to  violate  law, 
provided  only  they  do  it  for  the  good  of  the  service. 

On  the  other  hand  was  the  young  man  from  Ohio,  not 
yet  thirty-six  years  of  age,  who  had  waked  up  the  lion  of 
the  slave-holding  interest  already  in  his  Kansas  investi 
gation,  and  the  telling  speech  he  made  in  reference  to  it  in 
the  first  session  of  this  Congress.  Now  he  approaches  the 
very  magazine  of  the  enemy,  and  lights  a  slow  match,  and 
proclaims  President  and  all  guilty.  It  is  not  altogether 
unlike  Daniel  interpreting  the  handwriting  that  Elliot,  of 
Massachusetts,  had  said  would  appear;  nor  was  it  alto 
gether  unlike  David  contending  with  Goliath.  Then,  how 
ever,  the  future  was  doubtful,  but  subsequent  events  have 
made  it  clear.  But  what  was  the  verdict  then  to  be 
pronounced  in  the  near  future  upon  the  bold  and  daring 
exhibition  of  this  corruption  in  high  places?  At  the  assem 
bling  of  the  next  Congress  we  shall  see.  Meanwhile  our 
future  financier  must,  forsooth,  take  a  lesson  from  his  ex 
cellency,  President  Buchanan,  and  his  words  are  not  with 
out  significance. 

In  his  message,  delivered  on  the  8th  of  December,  1857, 
the  President  had  said : 

"  In  the  midst  of  unsurpassed  plenty  in  all  the  pro 
ductions  of  agriculture,  and  in  all  the  elements  of  national 
wealth,  we  find  our  manufactures  suspended,  our  public 
works  retarded,  our  private  enter] irises  of  different  kinds 


]•)•_>  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

abamibnod,'  anc^tnoiis&nds  of  useful  laborers  thrown  out  of 
employment,  and  reduced  to  want.  Tiie  revenue  of  the 
Government,  which  is  chiefly  derived  from  duties  on  im 
ports  from  abroad,  has  been  greatly  reduced,  while  the  ap 
propriations  made  by  Congress,  at  its  last  session,  for  the 
current  fiscal  year,  are  very  large  in  amount.  It  is  our 
duty  to  inquire  what  has  produced  such  unfortunate  re 
sults,  and  whether  their  recurrence  can  be  prevented.  In 
all  former  revulsions,  the  blame  might  have  been  fairly  at 
tributed  to  a  variety  of  co-operating  causes,  but  not  so  on 
the  present  occasion.  It  is  apparent  that  our  existing  mis 
fortunes  have  proceeded  solely  from  our  extravagant  and 
vicious  system  of  paper  currency  and  bank  credits,  ex 
citing  the  people  to  wild  speculations  and  gambling  in 
stocks.  These  revulsions  must  continue  to  recur,  at  suc 
cessive  intervals,  so  long  as  the  amount  -of  the  paper  cur 
rency  and  bank  loans  and  discounts  of  the  country  shall 
be  left  to  the  discretion  of  fourteen  hundred  irresponsible 
banking  institutions,  which,  from  the  very  law  of  their  nat 
ure,  will  consult  the  interest  of  their  stockholders,  rather 
than  the  public  welfare.  The  framers  of  the  Constitution, 
when  they  gave  to  Congress  the  power  '  to  coin  money  and 
to  regulate  the  value  thereof,'  and  prohibited  the  States 
from  coining  money,  emitting  bills  of  credit,  or  making 
any  thing  but  gold  and  silver  coin  a  legal  tender  in  pay 
ment  of  debts,  supposed  they  had  protected  the  people 
against  the  evils  of  an  excessive  and  irredeemable  paper 
currency.  They  are  not  responsible  for  the  existing  anom 
aly  that  a  Government  endowed  with  the  sovereign  attri 
bute  of  coining  money,  and  regulating  the  value  thereof, 
should  have  no  power  to  prevent  others  from  driving  the 
coin  out  of  the  country,  and  filling  up  the  channels  with 
paper  circulation,  which  does  not  represent  gold  and  silver." 


v.]  IX  THE  THIRTY-FIFTH  CONGRESS.  103 

Is  President  Buchanan  condemning  fiat  money,  and  an 
expansion  of  greenbacks,  and  the  silver  dollar  that  is  not  a 
dollar,  before  the  time?  At  any  rate,  he  is  throwing  out 
some  sound  hints  for  the  youthful  representative  from 
Ohio  to  work  up  into  our  sound  national  bank  currency. 

The  President  proceeds  : 

"It  is  one  of  the  highest  and  most  responsible  duties  of' 
government  to  insure  to  the  people  a  sound  circulating  me 
dium,  the  amount  of  which  ought  to  be  adapted,  with  the 
utmost  possible  skill,  to  the  wants  of  internal  trade  and 
foreign  exchange.  If  this  be  either  greatly  above  or 
greatly  below  the  proper  standard,  the  market  value  of 
every  man's  property  is  increased  or  diminished  in  the  same 
proportion,  and  injustice  to  individuals,  as  well  as  in 
calculable  evils  to  the  community,  are  the  consequence." 

The  President  says  further,  and  he  seems  to  be  putting 
words  into  the  mouth  of  our  Secretary  to  combat  the 
greenbacks  of  our  own  time:  "  No  bank  ought  ever  to  be 
chartered  without  such  restrictions  on  its  business  as  to  se 
cure  this  result"  [its  redeemability  in  coin].  "All  other 
restrictions  are  comparatively  vain.  This  is  the  only  true 
touch-stone;  the  only  efficient  regulator  of  a  paper  cur 
rency  ;  the  only  one  which  can  guard  the  public  against 
over-issues  and  bank  suspensions.  As  a  collateral  and 
eventual  security,  it  is  doubtless  wise,  and.  in  all  cases 
ought  to  be  required,  that  banks  shall  hold  an  amount  of 
United  States  or  State  securities  equal  to  their  notes  in 
circulation,  and  pledged  for  their  redemption.  This,  how 
ever,  furnishes  no  adequate  security  against  over-issues.' 
Mr.  Sherman  would  add,  unless  those  securities  be  depos 
ited  with  the  Government  in  exchange  for  currency.  "  On 
the  contrary,  it  may  be  perverted  to  inflate  the  currency," 
[as  greenbacks  now  would  do.]  "  Indeed,  it  is  possible 


104  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAT.  v. 

by  this  means,  to  convert  all  the  debts  of  the  United  States 
and  State  governments  into  bank  notes,  without  reference 
to  the  specie  required  to  redeem  them.  However  valua 
ble  these  securities  may  be  in  themselves,  they  can  not  be 
converted  into  gold  and  silver  at  the  moment  of  pressure, 
as  our  experience  teaches,  in  sufficient  time  to  prevent  bank 
suspensions  and  depreciation  of  bank  notes."  Our  Secre 
tary  has  taken  these  same  ideas,  or  ideas  just  like  them,  and 
so  modified  them  as  to  make  them  safe  by  suitable  limita 
tions  and  restrictions. 

The  President  then  proceeds  to  show  how  the  paper  has 
increased  as  compared  with  specie,  and  says:  "  From  this 
statement  it  is  easy  to  account  for  our  financial  history  for 
the  Inst  forty  years.  It  has  been  a  history  of  extravagant 
expansions  in  the  business  of  the  country,  followed  by  ru 
inous  contractions.  At  successive  intervals  the  best  and 
most  enterprising  men  have  been  tempted  to  their  ruin  by 
excessive  bank  loans  of  mere  paper  credit,''  (fiat  money), 
"  exciting  them  to  extravagant  importations  of  foreign 
goods,  wild  speculations,  and  ruinous  and  demoralizing 
stock  gambling'.  When  the  crisis  arrives,  as  arrive  it 
must,  the  banks  can  extend  no  relief  to  the  people.  In  a 
vain  struggle  to  redeem  their  liabilities  in  specie  they  are 
compelled  to  contract  their  loans  and  their  issues,  and  at 
last,  in  the  hour  of  distress,  when  their  assistance  is  most 
needed,  they  and  their  debtors  together  sink  into  insolv 
ency." 

This  view  of  the  old  financial  system  and  its  defects,  is 
necessary  to  bring  out,  in  bold  relief,  the  full  value  of  our 
present  national  bank  system,  and  the  part  borne  in  it  by 
our  Secretary,  as  will  be  seen  when  we  come  to  review 
that  stage  of  Government  financiering. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THIRTY-SIXTH    CONGRESS— FIRST   SESSION. 

THIS  Congress  opened  with  ominous  indications  of  a 
coming  storm.  Few  in  the  North  believed  there  would  be 
war,  most  in  the  South  hoped  there  would  not  be ;  but  war 
or  no  war,  union  or  disunion,  it  was  determined  that  slav 
ery  should  prevail,  and  tins  depended  on  the  question 
whether  Kansas  should  be  admitted  as  a  free  or  slave 
State.  Things  looked  so  auspicious  for  the  South  that 
President  Buchanan  opened  his  message  at  the  beginning 
of  this  Congress  with  quite  an  air  of  triumph.  The  de 
cision  of  the  United  States  Court,  in  the  Dred  Scott  case, 
and  the  execution  of  John  Brown,  had  made  the  South 
almost  certain  that  they  were  masters  of  the  situation.  It 
was  under  this  inspiration  that  the  President  wrote  his 
message,  as  follows: 

"While  it  is  the  duty  of  the  President,  from  time  to 
time,  to  give  to  Congress  information  of  the  state  of  the 
Union,  I  shall  not  refer  in  detail  to  the  recent  sad  and 
bloody  occurrences  at  Harper's  Ferry.  Still  it  is  proper  to 
observe  that  these  events,  however  bad  and  cruel  in  them 
selves,  derive  their  chief  importance  from  the  apprehen 
sion  that  they  are  but  symptoms  of  an  incurable  disease  in 
the  public  mind,  which  may  break  out  in  still  more  dan 
gerous  outrages,  and  terminate  at  last  in  open  war  by  the 
North  to  abolish  slavery  in  the  South." 

(105) 


IGfi  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

The  war  came,  it  is  true,  but  it  was  begun  in  the  South, 
and  by  the  South  to  perpetuate  slavery. 

"I  firmly  believe,"  says  the  President,  "  that  the  events 
at  Harper's  Ferry,  by  causing  the  people  to  pause  and  re 
flect  upon  the  possible  peril  to  their  cherished  institutions, 
will  be  the  means,  under  Providence,  of  allaying  the  exist 
ing  excitement,  and  preventing  further  outbreaks  of  a  sim 
ilar  character." 

Referring  to  the  Dred  Scott  decision,  he  says:  "I  cor 
dially  congratulate  you  upon  the  final  settlement  by  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  of  the  question  of 
slavery  in  the  Territories,  which  had  presented  an  aspect 
so  truly  formidable  at  the  commencement  ofjny  adminis 
tration.  The  right  has  been  established  of  every  citizen  to 
take  his  property  of  any  kind,  including  slaves,  into  the 
common  territories  belonging  equally  to  all  the  States  of 
the  Confederacy,  and  to  have  it  protected  there  under  the 
Federal  Constitution.  Neither  Congress,  nor  a  territorial 
legislature,  nor  any  human  power,  has  any  authority  to 
annul  or  impair  this  vested  right.  The  Supreme  Judicial 
Tribunal  of  the  country,  which  is  a  co-ordinate  branch  of 
the  Government,  has  sanctioned  and  affirmed  these  prin 
ciples  of  constitutional  law  so  manifestly  just  in  them 
selves,  and  so  well  calculated  to  promote  peace  and  har 
mony  among  the  States.  .  .  .  Thus  has  the  status 
of  a  territory  during  the  intermediate  period  from  its  first 
settlement  until  it  shall  become  a  State,  been  irrevocably 
fixed  by  the  final  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court.  Fortu 
nate  has  this  been  for  the  prosperity  of  the  territories  as 
well  as  the  tranquillity  of  the  States.  Now,  emigrants 
from  the  North  and  the  South,  the  East  and  the  West, 
will  meet  in  the  territories  on  a  common  platform,  having 


vi.]        THIRTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS— FIRST  SESSION.          107 

brought  with  them  that  species  of  property  best  adapted, 
in  their  own  opinion,  to  promote  their  welfare." 

These  are  the  views  and  feelings  with  which  President 
Buchanan  wrote  this  message.  Before  it  was  read,  if  he 
watched  the  movements  in  Congress,  he  must  have  begun 
to  feel  serious  misgivings.  Mr.  Sherman,  of  Ohio,  the 
man  who,  like  a  young  man  of  old,  had  brought  from 
Kansas  the  "evil  report"  of  the  invading  slaveholders 
from  Missouri,  the  David  who  had  dared  to  stand  up  in 
the  House  on  the  6th  of  January,  1858,  and  set  on  foot 
an  investigation  into  the  affairs  of  the  Brooklyn  Navy-yard, 
and,  in  a  minority  report,  had  hinted  strongly  at  the  idea 
of  impeachment, — this  man,  now,  of  all  others,  was  a 
prominent  candidate  for  Speaker  of  the  House.  The  first 
vote  for  Speaker,  in  that  Congress,  was  taken  on  the  5th 
of  December,  when  Mr.  Bocock,  of  Virginia,  had  eighty- 
six  votes,  and  Mr.  Sherman  sixty-six,  with  seventy-eight 
votes  scattering. 

At  this  the  South  became  alarmed,  and  John  B.  Clark, 
of  Missouri,  moved  as  follows: 

! '  WHEREAS,  Certain  members  of  this  House,  now  in 
nomination  for  Speaker,  did  indorse  and  recommend  the 
book  hereinafter  mentioned:* 

*  The  following  conversation,  reported  for  the  Cincinnati  En 
quirer,  will  explain  the  circumstance  to  which  this  preamble 
refers : 

"What  were  the  circumstances  of  your  signing  the  Helper  tes 
timonial?" 

"  Why,  a  member  of  Congress  from  New  York,  by  the  name  of 
Wheeler,  or  something  like  that,  took  around  a  paper  proposing 
that  old  Francis  P.  Blair,  then  acting  with  the  Republicans, 
should  be  employed  to  write  a  campaign  document  embodying 
and  abbreviating  the  facts  contained  in  a  book  by  Mr.  Helper,  of 
North  Carolina,  showing  the  injury  wrought  by  slavery.  You 


108  HON.  JOHN  SHEKMAX.  [CHAP. 

"Resolved,  That  the  doctrine  and  sentiments  of  a  certain 
book  called  '  The  Impending  Crisis  of  the  South,  How  to  Meet 
It,'  purporting  to  have  been  written  by  one  Hinton  R. 
Helper,  are"  insurrectionary  and  hostile  to  the  domestic 
peace  and  tranquillity  of  the  country,  and  that  no  member 
of  this  House,  who  has  indorsed  and  recommended  it,  or 
the  compendium  from  it,  is  fit  to  be  Speaker  of  this  House." 

The* next  day,  Mr.  Gilmer,  of  North  Carolina,  moved 
to  amend  the  above  by  striking  out  all  after  the  word  re 
solved,  and  inserting  in  lieu  thereof  the  following,  viz: 

"WHEREAS,  The  circumstances  and  condition  of  the 
country  require  that  the  asperities  and  animosities,  which 
for  the  last  few  years  have  been  rapidly  alienating  one  sec 
tion  of  the  country  from  another,  and  destroying  those 
fraternal  sentiments,  which  are  the  strongest  supports  of 
the  Constitution,  should  be  allayed;  whereas,  inasmuch  as 

can  see  the  inconsistency  the  Blairs  are  put  in  when  I  mention 
this  fact.  In  1859  I  was  beaten  for  Speaker  by  co-operating  with 
the  Blairs,  and  in  1879  you  see  where 'the  Blairs  stand.  Mr. 
Clark,  of  Missouri,  was  the  person  who  adopted  that  ingenious 
device  to  beat  me." 

"How  came  you,  so  early  in  your  career,  to  be  nominated  for 
Speaker  of  Congress?" 

"Well,  the  party  was  new  and  made  up  of  young  men  at  that 
time.  Besides,  we  were  in  a  minority,  and  the  caucus  nomi 
nation  for  Speaker  was  not  equivalent  to  an  election.  I  saw, 
after  two  or  three  ballots,  that  I  could  not  be  elected,  and  stood 
ready  at  any  moment  to  resign  if  any  other  person  in  the  party 
could  be  elected  Speaker  After  balloting  nine  weeks,  I  found 
that  three  persons  outside  our  party,  one  of  whom  was  Henry 
Winter  Davis,  of  Maryland,  were  willing  to  vote  for  Mr.  Pen- 
nington,  of  New  Jersey.  I  then  withdrew,  and  he  was  made 
Speaker;  but  the  fight  they  made  against  me  attracted  the  at 
tention  of  the  whole  country,  and  put  me  at  the  head  of  the 
Wavs  and  Means  Committee/' 


vi.]        THIRTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS— FIRST  SESSION.          109 

the  history  of  the  Government  furnishes  instances  of  suc 
cess  in  giving  quiet  to  the  country,  by  the  united  ex 
ertions  of  conservative  national  men,  irrespective  of  party, 
there  is  reason  to  hope  for  a  like  result  from  similar  labors, 
whereas,  in  1851,  when  the  minds  of  the  people  of  the 
Xorth  and  of  the  South  were  inflamed  on  the  subject  of 
slavery,  national  men  appealed  to  the  country  as  follows, 
to- wit: 

"The  undersigned  members  of  the  Thirty-first  Congress 
of  the  United  States,  believing  that  a  renewal  of  sectional 
controversy  upon  the  subject  of  shivery,  would  be  both 
dangerous  to  the  Union  and  destructive  of  its  objects,  and 
seeing  no  mode  by  which  such  controversy  can  be  avoided 
except  by  a  strict  adherence  to  the  settlement  thereof,  ef 
fected  by  its  compromise  acts,  passed  at  the  last  session  of 
Congress,  to  maintain  said  settlement  inviolate,  and  resist 
all  attempts  to  repeal  or  alter  the  acts  aforesaid,  unless  by 
the  general  consent  of  the  friends  of  the  measure  and  to 
remedy  such  evils,  if  any,  as  time  and  experience  may  de 
velop. 

"  And  for  the  purpose  of  making  this  resolution  effective, 
they  further  declare  that  they  will  not  support  for  the 
office  of  President  or  Vice-President,  or  of  Senator  or 
Representative  in  Congress,  or  as  member  of  State  Legis 
lature,  any  man,  of  whatever  party,  who  is  not  known  to 
be  opposed  to  the  disturbance  of  the  settlement  aforesaid, 
and  to  the  renewal,  in  any  form,  of  agitation  upon  the  sub 
ject  of  slavery." 

This  was  signed  by  Henry  Clay  and  forty -three  others, 
mostly  from  the  South.  Then  follows  an  extract  from  the 
platform  of  the  Democratic  Convention  in  Baltimore,  in 
1852,  to  the  effect  that  ''Congress  has  no  power  to  interfere 
with  slavery."  In  the  same  year  the  Whig  party  pro- 


110  HON.  JOHN  SHEKMAN.  [CHAP, 

claimed  its  adhesion  to  the  compromises  of  the  Fugitive 
Slave  Law.  Mr.  Gilmer's  resolution,  after  citing  all  these, 
was  to  abide  by  them.  These  not  being  agreed  to,  Mr. 
Gilmer  modified  his  resolution  by  adding:  "And  that  no 
member  should  be  elected  Speaker  of  this  House,  whose 
political  opinions  are  not  known  to  conform  to  the  follow 
ing  sentiment." 

But  no  vote  could  be  reached  on  this  resolution,  and  it 
was  informally  passed  over,  and  the  House  proceeded  with 
the  election  of  Speaker,  when  John  Sherman  had  107  votes, 
Bocock  88,  and  Gilrner  22.  The  House  now  voted 
steadily,  giving  Mr.  Sherman  a  plurality  of  votes,  often 
within  one  of  an  election,  until  the  thirty-ninth  ballot,  on 
January  27th,  when  William  H.  N.  Smith,  of  North 
Carolina,  had  a  plurality,  and  Mr.  Sherman  withdrew, 
Then,  on  February  1,  Pennington,  of  New  Jersey,  was 
elected  on  the  forty-fourth  ballot, 

Upon  the  organization  of  the  House,  Mr.  Sherman  was 
put  at  the  head  of  the  Committee  of  Ways  and  Means, 
just  the  place  where  he  could  do  the  most  good,  and  best 
study  the  subject  of  finance.  In  this  position  he  dis 
tinguished  himself  (as  in  fact  he  has  done  in  every  official 
position  he  has  held)  as  a  clear-headed,  straightforward 
man,  of  untiring  industry,  prompt  in  his  decisions,  prac 
tical  in  his  views,  and  commanding  in  his  influence.  His 
success  in  this  committee  was  the  more  conspicuous  by  con 
trast  with  that  of  the  preceding  Congress.  While  J. 
Glancy  Jones  was  chairman  of  this  committee  the  business 
of  the  House  lagged  far  behind  that  of  the  Senate-  But  it 
was  a  subject  of  comment  and  frequent  remark  in  the 
country,  that  Mr.  Sherman  kept  the  business  of  the  House 
even  in  advance  of  that  of  the  Senate.  This  must  have 
been  owing  to  the  clearness  with  which  he  saw  the  best 


vi.]        THIRTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS— FIRST  SESSION.         Ill 

measure,  whether  suggested  by  himself  or  others;  the 
promptness  of  his  decision,  and  the  facility  with  which  he 
could  bring  others  to  his  views,  or  yield  his  to  theirs,  when 
theirs  were  best. 

Mr.  Sherman's  position  now  was  one  of  all  others  best 
adapted  to  the  bent  of  his  mind.  The  whole  matter  of 
finance,  whether  in  government  or  individuals,  may  be 
comprehended  in  the  answers  to  these  several  questions : 
1.  What  are  the  sources  of  revenue?  2.  The  best  way  to 
get  it.  3.  How  to  keep  it.  4.  The  best  wray  to  use  it. 
The  first  two  of  these  questions  are  to  be  answered  by  the 
Committee  of  Ways  and  Means.  The  greater  part  of  Mr, 
Sherman's  efforts  in  Congress  thus  far  had  been  in  refer 
ence  to  the  third  of  these  questions,  viz:  How  to  keep  it. 
He, was  ever  watchful  against  leaks  in  the  treasury.  The 
greater  part  of  his  efforts  were  in  this  direction.  When 
on  the  Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs,  he  looked  up  and 
prepared  to  stop  the  payment  of  those  old  claims  for  French 
spoliation;  and,  when  the  matter  came  up  in  1867,  he  had 
the  plug  ready  to  stop  the  leak.  When  upon  the  Com 
mittee  of  Naval  Affairs,  in  the  late  Congress,  he  discovered 
those  immense  frauds  in  the  Brooklyn  and  Philadelphia 
Navy-yards,  and  it  seemed  to  be  from  natural  instinct  that 
he  put  forth  a  vigorous  effort  to  arrest  them.  It  was  not 
done  with  the  intention  of  annoying  or  impeding  President 
Buchanan,  but  to  save  funds.  He  is  not  a  quarrelsome 
man.  We  have  seen  in  him  no  disposition  to  wrangle,  nor 
make  capital  for  himself,  by  attacking  large  game.  Now, 
Mr.  Sherman  is  on  a  committee  where  he  may  and  must 
study  into  the  subject  of  where  and  how  to  get  the  means 
of  carrying  on  the  Government.  This,  in  the  last  half  of 
Buchanan's  Presidency,  was  no  sinecure.  The  President 
said  in  his  message: 


112  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

"It  will  appear,  from  the  report  of  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury,  that  it  is  extremely  doubtful,  to  say  the  least, 
whether  we  shall  be  able  to  pass  through  the  present  and 
next  fiscal  year  without  providing  additional  revenue ;  and 
this  can  only  be  done  by  strictly  confining  the  appropri 
ations  within  the  estimates  of  the  different  departments, 
without  making  an  allowance  for  any  additional  expendi 
tures  which  Congress  may  think  proper,  in  their  discretion, 
to  authorize,  and  without  providing  for  the  redemption  of 
any  portion  of  the  $20,000,000  of  treasury  notes  which 
have  been  already  issued." 

The  interest-bearing  debt  was  about  862,000,000.  The 
rate  which  the  Government  was  compelled  to  pay  for  the 
use  of  money,  at  that  time,  was  about  twelve  per  cent,  per 
annum.  With  the  credit  of  the  nation  as  low  as  this,  and, 
at  that,  not  able  to  pay  its  debts,  bills  incurred  for  current 
expenses,  there  is  evidently  a  mighty  work  ahead,  not  only 
for  the  Committee  of  Ways  and  Means,  but  for  the  rising 
financier  of  the  nation.  Suffice  it  to  say  here,  difficult  as 
it  was,  the  work  of  the  former  was  done  to  the  satisfaction 
of  the  House,  and  in  a  manner  which  very  much  endeared 
Mr.  Sherman  to  the  nation. 

Take  the  following  as  an  instance  out  of  many  that 
might  be  named : 

On  the  28th  of  February,  I860,  Mr.  Sherman  said  : 

"  I  am  instructed,  by  the  Committee  of  Ways  and  Means, 
to  report  back,  with  an  amendment,  a  bill  which  was  re 
ferred  to  this  committee." 

The  amendment  proposed  to  pay  twenty  cents  a  mile,  in 
M  straight  line,  instead  of  the  old  rates  of  mileage  to 
members. 

"This  bill  in  relation  to  mileage  was  sent  to  the  Com 
mittee  of  Ways  and  Mean?,  and  we  were  compelled  to  act 


vi.j         THIRTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS— FIRST  SESSION.  113 

upon  it,  and  I  think  now  the  best  way  to  commence  the 
active  legislation  of  this  session  is  to  correct  what  every 
body  admits  to  be  a  very  great  evil.  The  present  system 
is  grossly  unequal  and  unfair,  as  all  admit.  Some  mem 
bers  receive  five  or  six  thousand  dollars  for  mileage  each 
session,  while  others  receive  not  so  many  hundred.  When 
the  system  of  mileage  was  first  adopted,  it  was  intended 
not  only  as  payment  of  the  expenses  of  members  from  the 
places  of  their  residence,  but  to  pay  for  the  time  consumed 
in  traveling  here.  In  the  early  days  of  our  Government, 
many  members  of  Congress  were  necessarily  three  or  four 
weeks  in  getting  here,  after  long  and  wearisome  journeys. 
The  present  system  is  adapted  to  a  state  of  things  not  now 
existing.  The  amendment  recommended  by  the  Commit 
tee  of  Ways  and  Means,  and  unanimously  agreed  upon  by 
them,  saves  the  Government  about  $200,000  a  year.  It  is 
true  it  takes  from  our  compensation,  but,  notwithstanding,  I 
think  the  measure  is  right,  and  ought  to  be  adopted,"  says 
our  future  financier. 

Thus,  in  every  instance  where  any  thing  could  be  done 
in  this  way,  Mr.  Sherman  was  in  favor,  first,  of  paying 
debts,  doing  right,  and,  second,  saving  expense.  "A 
penny  saved  is  a  penny  earned  "  is  a  maxim  inwrought  into 
the  very  mental  and  moral  constitution  of  the  Secretary  of 
the  Treasury. 

It  will  be  remembered  that,  in  the  last  Congress,  a  select 
committee  had  been  appointed  to  investigate  the  abuses  at 
the  Brooklyn  Navy-yard.  By  this  committee,  in  its  minor 
ity  report,  some  reflections  were  cast  upon  the  President, 
for  not  scrutinizing  more  closely  the  conduct  of  his  agents. 
So  far,  the  President  had  been  satisfied  with  the  manner  in 
which  his  conduct  had  been  whitewashed  by  the  majority  re 
port,  seeing  no  action  had  been  taken  upon  it  by  Congress. 


114  HON.  JOHN  SHKRMAX.  [CHAP. 

But  things  were  changed  now.  Mr.  Sherman  was  rising, 
and  Mr.  Buchanan  was  going  down.  On  the  16th  of  Feb- 
ruaiy,  Mr.  Sherman  brought  forward  the  resolutions  of  the 
minority  of  the  committee  on  the  abuses  in  the  Brooklyn 
Navy-yard,  and  they  were  referred  to  the  Committee  on 
the  Navy  Department.  Mr.  Hatton,  from  that  commit 
tee,  reported  them  to  the  House,  and  they  were  passed,  on 
the  13th  of  June,  by  a  large  majority. 

The  same  influences  that  prevailed  in  the  House  prompted 
several  other  resolutions  of  inquiry.  One,  by  Mr.  Hoard, 
that  "  a  select  committee  be  appointed  to  inquire  into  any 
improper  attempts,  on  the  part  of  any  one  connected  with 
the  executive  departments,  to  influence  the  action  of  mem 
bers." 

Another,  by  Mr.  Covode,  "  to  inquire  whether  the  Pres 
ident  of  the  United  States,  or  any  other  officer  of  the  Gov 
ernment,  has,  by  money,  patronage,  or  any  other  im 
proper  means,  sought  to  influence  the  actiori  of  Congress. 
or  any  committees  thereof,  for  or  against  the  passage  of  any 
law  appertaining  to  the  rights  of  any  State  or  Territory." 
Several  other  matters  were  included.  The  President,  in  a 
letter  to  the  Pittsburgh  centenary  celebration,  of  the  25th 
of  November,  1858,  speaks  "of  the  employment  of  money 
to  carry  elections."  This,  also,  was  to  be  inquired  into. 
This  was  received  by  suspending  rules,  by  a  vote  of  117  to 
45.  Mr.  Hoard's  resolution  cited  the  fact  that  a  Repre 
sentative  from  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  Mr.  Hickman, 
did,  on  the  12th  of  December  last,  on  the  floor  of  this 
House,  make  this  statement:  "Mr.  Buchanan  could  not 
purchase  me,  so  I  can  not  be  purchased  by  others.  I  have 
already  been  offered  more  than  I  am  worth,  and  refused  to 
sell  myself  at  that." 

"On  the  same  day,  Mr.  Haskin,  a  Representative  from 


vi.J         THIRTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS— FIRST  SESSION.         lir> 

the  State  of  New  York,  on  the  floor  of  this  House,  made 
the  following  statement:  'In  answer  to  this  (a  charge  of 
being  one  of  the  mercenary  band),  Jet  me  say  that  no  one 
knows  better  than  Mr.  Buchanan  himself,  the  utter  false 
hood  of  this  charge,  for  he  endeavored  by  threats  and  by 
seduction  of  patronage,  without  effect,  to  draw  true  men 
away  from  the  path  of  duty.' 

"And  on  the  14th  day  of  December  last,  Mr.  Adrian,  a 
Representative  from  New  Jersey,  on  the  floor  of  this 
House,  made  the  following  statement :  '  During  the  Le- 
Compton  controversy,  I  was  approached  in  such  a  manner 
as  shows  corruption  on  the  part  of  the  administration.'" 

On  these  grounds,  Mr.  Hoard's  committee  was  ap 
pointed. 

To  these  proceedings  the  President  sent  two  protests  in 
the  form  of  messages  to  the  House, — one  on  the  29th  of 
May,  and  another  on  the  25th  of  June.     The  first  one  was 
aimed  more  particularly  at  the  Covode  Committee  of  In 
quiry,  in  reference  to  the  alleged  attempts  to  influence  the 
decision  of  the  Kansas  affairs.     In  reference  to  this,  the 
President  says:   "I  feel  proudly  conscious  that  there  is  no 
public  act  of  my  life,  which  will  not  bear  the  strictest  scru 
tiny.      I  defy  all  investigation.     Nothing  hut  the  basest 
perjury  can  sully  my  good  name.     I  do  not  fear  even  this, 
because  I  cherish  an  humble  confidence  that  the  Gracious 
Being,  who  has  hitherto  defended  and  protected  me  against 
the  shafts  of  falsehood  and  malice,  will  not  desert  me  now, 
when  I  have  become  old  and  gray-headed.     I  can  declare 
before  God  and  my  country,  that  no  human  being  (with  an 
exception,  scarcely  worthy  of  notice),  has  at  any  period  of 
my  life,  dared  to  approach  me  with  a  corrupt  or  dishonora 
ble  proposition;  and  until  recent  developments,  it  had  never 
entered  my  imagination  that  any  poison,  even  in  the  storm 


116  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP, 

of  political  excitement,  would  charge  me,  in  the  most  re 
mote  degree,  with  having  made  such  a  proposition  to  any 
human  being.  I  may  now  exclaim,  in  the  language  of  com 
plaint  employed  by  my  first  and  greatest  predecessor,  '  that 
I  have  been  abused  in  such  exaggerated  and  indecent  term?, 
as  could  scarcely  be  applied  to  a  Nero,  to  a  notorious  de 
faulter,  or  even  to  a  common  pickpocket.'  I  do,  therefore, 
for  the  reasons  stated,  and  in  the  name  of  the  people  of 
the  several  States,  solemnly  protest  against  these  proceed 
ings  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  because  they  are  in 
violation  of  the  rights  of  the  co-ordinate  Executive  branch 
of  the  Government,  and  subversive  of  its  constitutional 
independence." 

By  Mr.  Sherman's  motion,  this  was  referred  to  the  Com 
mittee  on  the  Judiciary. 

In  the  other  message,  most  of  the  argument  is  directed 
against  the  Covode  Committee,  but  the  keenest  thrust  is 
made  at  Mr.  John  Sherman.  Mr.  Sherman  had  been  the 
first  to  probe  the  festering  wounds  of  the  Republic,  and  the 
force  of  the  instrument  was  most  keenly  felt.  The  Presi 
dent  did  not  aim  directly  at  him,  but  said:  ''The  House, 
on  a  recent  occasion,  has  attempted  to  degrade  the  Presi 
dent,  by  adopting  the  resolution  of  Mr.  John  Sherman,  de 
claring  that,  in  conjunction  with  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy, 
'by  receiving  and  considering  the  party  relations  of  bidders 
for  contracts,  and  the  effect  of  awarding  contracts  upon 
pending  elections,  have  set  an  example  dangerous  to  the 
public  safety,  and  deserving  the  reproof  of  this  House.' 

"The  absence  of  all  proof  to  sustain  this  attempt  to  de 
grade  the  President,  whilst  it  manifests  the  venom  of  the 
shaft  aimed  at  him,  has  destroyed  the  vigor  of  the  blow. 

"To  return,  after  this  digression,  should  the  House,  by 
the  institution  of  Covode  committees,  votes  of  censure,  and 


vi.]         THIRTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS— FIRST  SESSION.         117 

other  devices  to  harass  the  President,  reduce  him  to  sub 
servience  to  their  will,  and  render  him  their  creature,  then 
the  well-balanced  government  which  our  fathers  framed, 
will  be  annihilated.  This  conflict  has  already  been  com 
menced  in  earnest  by  the  House  against  the  Executive. 
I  have  passed  triumphantly  through  this  ordeal. 
My  vindication  is  complete.  The  committee  have  reported 
no  resolution  looking  to  an  impeachment  against  me;  no 
resolution  of  censure;  not  even  a  resolution  pointing  out 
any  abuses  in  any  of  the  executive  departments  of  the  Gov 
ernment,  to  be  corrected  by  legislation." 

Mr.  Sherman,  in  answer  to  the  President's  protest,  said: 
"Mr.  Speaker,  the  President  of  the  United  States  has 
made,  for  the  first  time,  a  protest  against  the  exercise,  by 
the  House  of  Representatives,  of  one  of  its  most  important 
constitutional  powers.  I  am  willing  to  give  to  his  commu 
nication  all  the  consideration  which  its  gravity  demands. 
I  am  willing  this  House  should  now  consider,  whether  or 
not  it  has  the  power  to  investigate  any  thing  and  every 
t)nng  which  may  be  wrongly  done  by  any  officer  of  the 
executive  branch  of  the  Government ;  because,  if  the  priv 
ilege  of  exemption,  which  the  President  now  sets  up  for 
himself,  belongs  to  him,  then  it  extends  to  and  attaches  to 
every  subordinate  under  him. 

"The  Constitution  of  the  United  States  declares  that  the 
President,  Vice-President,  and  all  civil  officers  of  the  United 
States,  shall  be  removed  from  office  on  impeachment  for, 
and  conviction  of  treason,  bribery,  and  other  high  crimes 
and  misdemeanors.  It  further  declares,  in  another  clause, 
that  this  House  of  Representatives  shall  have  the  power 
of  impeachment.  Under  these  clauses  this  House,  sir,  has 
the  right  to  examine  into  any  thing  which  may  affect  the 
conduct  of  any  public  officer  under  this  Government,  from 


118  HOX.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

the  Chief  Executive  down  to  the  little  page  that  runs  on 
your  errands  upon  this  floor.  Every  one  of  the  officers  of 
this  Government  is  subjected  to  the  power  of  this  House. 
But  the  President  says  we  can  not  make  our  inquiries  but 
in  one  way,  and  that  is  by  preferring  articles  of  impeach 
ment.  How  will  you  prepare  articles  of  impeachment? 
Plow  will  you  take  preliminary  proof  necessary  to  ascertain 
whether  an  officer  of  this  Government  has  violated  his 
duty?  Only,  sir,  by  preliminary  examination.  There  is 
no  other  way.  It  is  only  by  taking  testimony  that  you  can 
ascertain  whether  or  not  there  is  good  ground  to  charge 
that  an  officer  of  the  Government  has  violated  his  public 
duty.  How  else  can  we  do  it? 

"What  does  the  President  of  the  United  States  gravely 
ask  us  to  do  in  the  message  which  has  just  been  read? 
That  this  high  judicial  body  shall  find  an  impeachment 
upon  mere  rumor?  Shall  we,  upon  the  mere  rumors  which 
are  circulating  in  the  newspapers,  and  upon  the  streets, 
find  an  impeachment?  The  very  necessity  of  the  case  im 
plies  that  we  have  a  right  to  investigate  all  charges  made 
in  the  public  prints,  and  elsewhere.  If  it  is  alleged  that 
the  President  has  been  seriously  and  improperly  connected 
with  certain  transactions,  we  have  a  right  in  this  House  to 
inquire  into  the  probable  truth  of  these  things.  If  we  find 
that  they  are  probably  true,  then  it  is  our  duty  to  prefer 
articles  of  impeachment  against  the  President  at  the  bar  of 
the  Senate. 

"  Why,  sir,  we  have  examined  into  the  conduct  of  our 
own  members, — into  the  conduct  of  a  Senator;  we  have 
the  right  to  inquire  into  the  conduct  of  any  of  the  officers 
of  this  Government,  and  shall  the  President  escape?  At  the 
last  session  of  Congress — indeed,  at  almost  every  session  of 
Congress — the  conduct  of  some  executive  officer  has  been 


vi.]        THIRTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS— FIRST  SESSION.  no 

inquired  into.  What  provision  of  the  Constitution  exempts 
the  President  from  this  inquiry?  What  distinction  is  there 
between  him  and  the  members  of  this  House?  Do  not  I 
stand  upon  the  same  constitutional  right,  as  the  Represen 
tative  of  one  hundred  thousand  people,  as  the  President  of 
the  United  States  does  as  the  representative  of  millions?  I 
have  the  same  constitutional  right,  and  am  subject  to  the 

same  mode  of  trial  for  malfeasance,   or  non-feasance no 

more,  no  less.     So  with  every  officer  of  this  Government. 
There  is  no  exception  made  in  favor  of  the  President. 

'Mr.  Speaker,  the  doctrine  set  up  by  the  President  of 
the  United  States  in  this  message,  is  the  same  under  which 
Europe  was  governed  for  a  thousand  years— that  the  king 
can  do  no  wrong.  That  is  the  doctrine— that  the  king 
could  do  no  wrong.  Charles  I.  went  to  the  block  because 
the  people  of  England  declared  that  the  king  was  not 
above  and  beyond  their  power.  So  it  was  with  Louis  XVI. 
and  the  French  people.  This  doctrine,  set  up  by  the  Pres 
ident  of  the  United  States,  is,  in  my  judgment,  the  very 
worst  that  has  been  announced  since  the  foundation  of  this 
Republic— his  conduct  not  to  be  inquired  into." 

The  other  message  of  the  President,  protesting  against 
the  action  of  the  House,  was  received  but  a  few  hours  be 
fore  the  close  of  the  session,  and,  of  course,  there  was  no 
opportunity  to  reply.  - 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THIRTY-SIXTH    CONGRESS,    SECOND    SESSION. 

THE  storm  of  war  begins.  South  Carolina  "  resumes 
the  powers  delegated  to  the  General  Government,"  and 
then  secedes.  The  President  sends  a  message  on  the  peril 
ous  state  of  the  country,  which  is  referred  to  a  committee 
of  thirty. 

Congress  met  on  the  3d  of  December.  On  the  5th  Mr. 
Sherman  was  ready  with  an  appropriation  bill.  There 
seems  then  to  have  been  a  disposition  to  attach  "riders." 
One  was  attached  limiting  the  course  of  study  at  AVest 
Point,  but  the  method  of  doing  business  adopted  by  the 
chairman  of  the  Committee  of  Ways  and  Means  being 
straightforward  and  direct,  he  waived  all  side  issues  and 
pushed  the  matter  to  a  vote. 

It  may  be  of  some  interest  to  know  what  was  Mr.  Sher 
man's  plan  of  saving  the  Union  then,  when  expedients 
were  in  vogue,  as  they  have  been  since  upon  resumption: 

"  By  MR.  SHERMAN. — Resolved,  That  the  only  true  and 
effectual  remedy  for  the  dissensions  that  now  exist  between 
the  several  States,  and  the  people  thereof,  is  in  the  faithful 
observance,  by  the  several  States  and  the  people  thereof, 
of  all  the  compromises  of  the  Constitution,  and  of  the  laws 
made  in  pursuance  thereof 

"Resolved,  That  the  special  committee  of  thirty  be  in 
structed  to  inquire  whether  any  State,  or  the  people  there- 

(120) 


CHAP. vii.]  THIRTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS,  SECOND  SESSION.    121 

of,  have  fulled  to  obey  and  enforce  the  obligations  imposed 
by  the  Constitution ;  and  if  so,  the  remedy  thereof,  and 
whether  any  further  legislation  is  required  to  secure  such 
enforcement. 

"Resolved,  That  in  order  to  avoid  all  further  contro 
versies  in  regard  to  the  several  Territories  of  the  United 
States,  said  committee  divide  said  territory  into  States 
of  convenient  size,  with  a  view  to  their  prompt  admission 
into  the  Union  on  an  equal  footing  with  the  other 
States." 

This  simply  shows  that  Mr.  Sherman  was  neither  a  rad 
ical  nor  an  extremist  even  amidst  the  excitement  of  those 
stirring  times. 

Again,  Mr.  Sherman  is  in  search  of  frauds  on  the 
Treasury.  Mr.  Morris,  of  Illinois,  came  near  getting  the 
start  of  him,  and  proposed  a  select  committee  of  five  to 
look  after  certain  bonds  that  had  disappeared  from  the 
Interior  .Department.  But  Mr.  Sherman  asked  him  to 
wait,  as  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  would  soon  give  the 
required  information.  On  the  same  day  the  Speaker  laid 
before  the  House  a  communication  from  the  Secretary  of 
the  Interior,  stating  that  "on  Saturday  night  last  he  was 
informed,  by  the  voluntary  confession  of  an  officer  of  his 
Department,  that  State  bonds  held  in  trust  by  the  United 
States  Government,  for  certain  Indian  tribes,  to  the  amount 
of  $870,000,  had  been  abstracted  from  its  custody,  and 
converted  to  private  use." 

It  might  have  been  well  if  Mr.  Sherman  had  been  ap 
pointed  on  the  Committee  on  Indian  as  well  as  Naval 
Affairs,  in  the  Thirty-fifth  Congress. 

As  an  indication  of  the  amount  of  labor,  care,  and 
thought  exercised  by  that  man  in  the  short  second  session 
of  the  Thirty-sixth  Congress,  lasting  seventy-five  days,  ex- 


122  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

elusive  of  holidays  and  Sundays,  he  was  on  the  floor, 
speaking  more  or  less  over  two  hundred  times. 

The  following  are  his  remarks  upon  the  Treasury  Note 
Bill,  only  one  week  after  he  was  appointed  on  the  com 
mittee.  He  must  have  labored  night  and  day  to  get  all 
these  figures  together.  Mr.  Sherman  said: 

"Mr.  Speaker,  the  House  will  perceive  that  the  bill, 
nowr  before  us,  is  a  mere  temporary  expedient  to  provide 
for  the  pressing  demands  upon  the  Treasury.  Most  of  the 
members  are  aware  that  the  Government  has  not  been  able 
to  pay,  for  the  last  week  or  two,  our  own  salaries,  and 
many  other  demands  at  New  York  and  other  places.  The 
revenues  have  fallen  short,  during  the  last  week,  amount 
ing,  I  believe,  to  but  $250,000.  Most  of  the  revenues  are 
now  paid  in  Treasury  notes.  This  bill  authorizes  the  issue 
of  $10,000,000  Treasury  notes  for  temporary  purposes. 
The  amount  ROW  outstanding  is  indeed  in  excess  of  the 
amount  authorized  by  this  bill ;  so  that  the  bill  provides 
for  no  increase  of  the  debt. 

"  I  might  here  rest,  as  to  what  I  have  to  say  about  this 
bill,  but  it  is  proper  for  me  to  add  that  it  will  be  necessary 
for  the  House,  very  soon  and  promptly,  to  consider  some 
other  measures  of  relief.  On  the  1st  of  July  last  there 
was  in  the  Treasury  $3,629,206,  a  balance  entirely  too 
small  to  carry  on  the  ordinary  operations  of  the  Treasury. 
During  the  first  quarter  of  the  fiscal  year  the  expenditures 
exceeded  the  receipts  some  82,000,000,  and  there  are  now 
unpaid  appropriations  to  the  amount  of  ten  or  fifteen 
millions. 

"  The  receipts  during  the  current  quarter  will  probably 
fall  several  millions  short  of  the  necessary  expenditures, 
and  if  we  are  to  judge  from  the  temper  of  the  times,  the 
distress  in  the  country,  and  the  political  difficulties  that 


vn.]     THIRTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS,  SECOND  SESSION.        123 

surround  us,  it  is  probable  that  during  the  remaining  three- 
quarters  of  this  fiscal  year,  there  will  be  a  deficiency  of 
from  ten  to  fifteen  million  dollars.  This  is  not  the  fault 
of  this  House,  but  it  is  the  fault  of  our  revenue  laws. 
For  the  last  three  years  we  have  been  living  upon  the 
credit  of  the  Government.  I  have  a  paper  before  me 
showing  that  since  the  1st  of  July,  1857,  we  have  been 
going  in  debt  to  the  extent  of  nearly  fifty  million  dollars. 
In  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1858,  the  deficiency,  or 
excess  of  payments  over  revenue,  amounted  to  $27,162,188. 
In  the  next  fiscal  year  it  amounted  to  $15,902,932.  Dur 
ing  the  last  fiscal  year  it  amounted  to  $6,725,000,  and 
according  to  the  statement  already  made,  during  the  pres 
ent  fiscal  year  the  deficiency  has  been  not  less  than  from 
fifteen  to  twenty  million  dollars.  I  have  prepared  a  state 
ment  which  shows  at  a  glance  the  changed  condition  of 
our  finances  in  three  years. 

"  On  the  1st  of  July.  1857,  the  entire  debt  of  the  Gov 
ernment,  after  deducting  the  balance  then  in  the  Treasury, 
was  $11,350,272.63. 

In  1858  it  was  $38,512,462.56. 
In  1859  "  "  854,415,393.79. 
In  1860  "  "  $61,140,497.00. 

"It  is  manifest,  therefore,  that  the  House,  in  order  to 
preserve  the  credit  of  the  Government,  ought  to  make 
some  change  in  the  revenue  laws  or  to  diminish  the  expen 
ditures.  We  must  either,  by  a  bold  stroke,  reduce  the 
expenditures  fifteen  or  twenty  million  dollars,  or  contract 
new  loans,  or  raise  new  revenues.  The  bill  now  pending 
in  the  Senate,  I  need  not  inform  the  members  of  this 
House,  authorizes  a  loan  of  some  $20,000,000,  and  in 
addition  to  that  provides  for  the  increase  of  the  revenue. 


124  HON.  JOHX  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

If  that  bill  should  pass,  and  if  the  present  disturbed  con 
dition  of  the  country  be  healed  up,  then  the  annual  reve 
nue  would  amply  cover  our  expenditures,  upon  the  basis 
of  existing  laws  and  salaries ;  but  with  the  present  diffi 
culties,  and  with  our  present  revenue  laws,  it  is  manifest 
that  this  bill  will  not  be  the  last  loan  bill,  nor  the  last 
Treasury  note  bill  that  the  Committee  of  Ways  and  Means 
will  have  to  report  to  this  House." 

The  above  statement  is  simple  and  clear.  A  peculiarity 
in  Mr.  Sherman's  financiering  is  to  keep  the  country  ad 
vised  of  the  exact  condition  of  the  Treasury,  the  revenues 
and  the  expenditures,  and,  above  all,  of  the  debts.  This 
is  the  first  clear  statement  the  writer  has  found  (in  these 
three  years)  of  the  national  debt.  Another  peculiarity  is 
an  irrepressible  impulse  to  prevent  even  the'smallest  loss  or 
needless  expenditure.  A  third  is,  in  all  possible  cases  to 
"pay  as  you  go."  Contract  no  debt  for  current  expenses,  but 
if  there  are  debts,  to  be  always  sinking  them,  if  possible. 

On  the  2d  day  of  February  another  loan  bill  was  pro 
posed  by  the  Committee  of  Ways  and  Means,  which  closed 
with  these  words:  "But  no  additional  compensation  shall 
be  allowed  to  any  person  receiving  a  salary  by  law." 

Mr.  Sherman  said:  "In  last  December,  at  the  pressing 
instance  of  Mr.  Secretary  Cobb,  we  authorized  the  issue  of 
$10,000,000  treasury  notes,  with  the  specific  pledge  of  the 
balance  of  the  loan  of  June  22d,  for  the  redemption  of  these 
treasury  notes;  and  now  my  friend  from  Missouri  proposes 
to  take  that  loan,  thus  specifically  pledged  for  the  redemption 
of  these  treasury  notes,  and  apply  it  to  the  current  expenses 
of  the  Government.  I  say  that  it  would  be  a  violation  of 
the  public  faith,  for  this  Congress  to  pass  the  law  now  pro 
posed  by  the  gentleman  from  Missouri.  The  moneyed  men 
of  New  York  would  say  the  credit  of  the  Government  had 


vii.]       THIRTY-SIXTH  CuNGitEa-S— tfECOXP  SK.SSIOX.       125 

been  violated,  because,  when  they  took  the  treasury  notes, 
under  the  law  of  December  last,  it  was  with  a  specific  pledge, 
with  a  mortgage  in  fact,  upon  the  loan  of  the  22d  of  June 
last."  So  watchful  was  Mr.  Sherman  to  guard  the  public 
credit  of  the  nation.  But  this  was  not  all ;  he  closed  these 
remarks  as  follows: 

"And  here  let  me  say  a  word  to  my  friends  on  this  side 
of  the  House.  I  ask  them,  when  we  are  compelled  to  come 
in  here,  with  loan  bill  after  loan  bill,  to  enable  the  Gov 
ernment  to  meet  its  expenses,  if  it  is  not  time  to  pause,  in 
the  appropriations  they  are  making,  certainly  for  the  benefit 
of  moonshine  speculations,  for  rights  within  the  jurisdiction 
of  a  foreign  government."  As  much  as  to  say,  let  not  a 
dollar  be  wasted. 

Again,  Mr.  Sherman  said  on  the  same  subject:  "The 
sum  we  have  to  do  is  not  beyond  the  capacity  of  the 
youngest  boy  in  an  arithmetic  class.  Here  we  have  a  debt 
of  $25,000,000,  and  how  are  we  going  to  pay  it?  You 
have  $10,000,000  of  treasury  notes,  bearing  twelve  per 
cent,  interest,  which  are  due  'next  December.  How  are 
you  going  to  pay  them?  My  friend  from  Missouri  says, 
by  a  loan  in  the  tariff  bill.  But  there  is  already  a  loan  bill 
upon  our  statute  books,  under  which  these  treasury  notes 
can  be  withdrawn  when  they  become  due  Why  then  re 
peal  one  law  to  give  place  to  another,  unless  it  be  to  show 
that  the  new  administration  has  borrowed  $21,000,000  to 
pay  the  liabilities  of  the  Government?  I  say  to  you,  gen 
tlemen  on  the  other  side,  pay. your  own  liabilities,  or  pledge 
the  Government  credit  for  enough  money  to  pay  them.  I 
trust  that  the  incoming  administration  will  not  come  into 
this  House,  and  ask,  year  after  year,  loan  bills  to  pay  cur 
rent  expenses." 

The  reader  has  now  followed  Mr.  Sherman  through  his 


126  HOX.  JOHN  HHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

three  terms  in  Congress ;  various  incidents  (some  of  them 
may  appear  trifling,  too  much  so,  perhaps,  to  be  cited  here) 
have  been  noticed  in  the  order  of  time  in  which  they 
occurred,  and  not  in  the  order  of  subjects  to  which  they 
relate.  But  they  are  put  down  here  as  they  occurred,  in 
"order  to  give  a  living  representation  of  what  he  has  done, 
and  the  manner  in  which  it  has  been  done. 

The  three  terms  that  Mr.  Sherman  served  in  the  House 
of  Representatives,  were  the  training  school  in  which  the 
great  financier  was  educated.  But  in  all  this  time  he  had 
no  teacher  but  himself;  and  it  is  evident  that  that  teacher 
was  a  very  industrious  one,  very  apt  to  teach,  and  the 
learner  equally  apt  and  industrious.  He  always  directed 
his  attention  to  subjects  as  they  were  providentially  brought 
before  him.  When  appointed  on  the  Committee  on  Foreign 
Relations,  he  studied  up  the  subject  of  the  claims  for  French 
Spoliation  prior  to  1800,  but  it  was  in  order  first  to  do  right, 
and  next  to  save  money  to  the  Government.  When  he  was 
put  upon  the  Committee  on  Naval  Affairs,  he  studied  dili 
gently  the  whole  system  of  contracts  for  ship-building, 
repairs  and  supplies  to  the  navy,  in  order  to  find  out  how 
the  funds  could  be  used  most  economically  for  the  Govern 
ment.  Though  not  the  chairman,  he  did  not  wait  to  be  set 
to  work  by  the  responsible  head,  but  set  himself  to  work 
and  study,  being  both  master  and  pupil.  He  had  a  select 
committee  appointed,  of  which  he  was  chairman,  and  in  a 
little  over  a  month  he  filled  a  volume  of  a  thousand  pages, 
detailing  the  most  enormous  abuses  and  official  neglect  and 
favoritism,  where  vast  sums  were  wasted,  at  the  very  time 
the  treasury  wras  running  in  debt  for  current  expenses.  He 
was  put  on  the  Kansas  Investigating  Committee,  and 
though  riot  the  chairman,  yet  was  ready  to  take  a  part  in 
the  work  that  won  him  the  applause  of  one  side  and  the 


vii.l       THIRTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS-SECOND  SESSION.       127 

hatred  of  the  other.  The  motive  that  prompted  him  in 
this  was  not  so  much  financial  economy,  as  an  irrepressible 
desire  to  see  right  done,  and  violence  and  fraud  suppressed. 
His  regard  for  what  was  morally  right,  for  what  is  agree- 
ahle  to  constitution  and  law,  for  good  order  and  fair  play, 
was  the  impelling  motive. 

When  the  danger  was  threatening  of  a  disruption  of  the' 
Nation,  the  remedy  proposed  by  him  was  the  sensible  one, 
that  national  compacts  and  compromises  should  be  strictly 
observed;    that  the   Government  should   search   out   the 
delinquents,  and  remove  the  temptations  to  party  strife. 

Mr.  Sherman  urged  a  reform  in  the  system  of  mileage, 
because  it  saved  money  to  the  Government,  was  fair  to  the 
members,  though  it  took  money  out  of  his  own  pocket. 
With  the  same  view  and  the  same  self-sacrifice,  he  made 
an  unsuccessful  effort  to  abolish  the  franking  privilege, 
though  it  has  since  succeeded.  As  a  student,  then,  he  was 
ready  to  enter  any  department  of  study  that  offered,  and 
as  a  teacher  gave  sound  instructions;  but  in  every  thing 
almost  there  was  more  or  less  direct  reference  to  the  guild,. 
Finance  was  his  specialty,  and  it  nearly  always  came  in 
somewhere.  Even  in  reference  to  ^Kansas,  there  was  a 
questioning  whether  money  had  not  been  used  to  carry  a 
measure,  and  on  another  occasion  a  caution  against  "moon 
shine  speculations  in  a  foreign  country." 

Mr.  Sherman  evidently  has  an  almost  unbounded  capacity 
for  learning.  Considering  the  immense  variety  of  the  sub 
jects  that  came  under  observation,  the  extensive  reading 
required,  and  often  the  closest  investigation,  in  order  to  be 
well  posted  in  regard  to  them,  the  rapidity  with  which  he 
must  often  make  his  decisions,  the  immense  responsibility 
if  a  decision  were  wrong,  with  two  hundred  learned  men 
around  to  detect  the  slightest  error,  the  whole  nation,  in 


123  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAJ-. 

fact,  looking  on,  many  of  them  bitter  opponents;  and  vet 
seldom  do  we  ever  hear  of  a  slip  of  the  tongue,  the  pen,  or 
the  memory.  To  rise  more  than  two  hundred  times  in 
seventy-five  days  to  address  such  an  audience,  on  such  a 
variety  of  subjects,  implies  a  most  remarkable  capacity  for 
learning,  patience  and  industry  in  searching  it  out,  memory 
in  retaining  it,  and  readiness  in  using  it;  four  mental  traits 
that  rarely  ever  meet  in  the  same  person. 

Then,  again,  Mr.  Sherman  is  not  only  honest  financially, 
but  most  scrupulously  truthful.  In  looking  through  some 
eighteen  volumes  of  the  Congressional  Globe,  during  his 
three  terms  in  the  House,  the  writer  does  not  remember  a 
single  instance  where  he  is  accused  of  "crossing  his  tracks, 
or  making  an  incorrect  statement,  or  in  the  heat  of  debate 
saying  what  he  is  obliged  to  recant. 

Nor  has  Mr.  Sherman  so  wonderfully  escaped  by  any 
thing  like  a  timid  or  time-serving  course.  On  the  other 
hand  he  not  only  has  strong  and  clear  convictions,  but  is 
remarkably  bold  and  prompt  to  avow  them ;  and  yet  it  is 
always  done  so  coolly  and  courteously,  and  so  well  timed, 
that  seldom  ever  is  any  offense  taken.  All  this  shows  him 
to  have  been  a  thorough-going  student,  and  an  apt  learner 
during  his  entire  course  in  the  House  of  Representatives. 

MR.  SHERMAN'S  SCHEME  OF  FINANCE. 

While  Mr.  Sherman  was  in  the  House  of  Representa 
tives,  whenever  he  could  put  in  a  word,  or  do  an  act,  or 
suggest  any  measure  that  could  aid  the  Government  finances, 
he  did  so.  As  already  noticed,  he  brought  forward  some 
temporary  measures,  and  urged  them  with  great  force,  to 
relieve  the  treasury.  One  speech  was  made  in  the  House, 
May  7,  1860,  upon  the  Morrill  tariff  bill.  His  'first  point 
was  to  show  that  the  then  existing  tariff  did  not  produce 


vii.]        THIRTY-SIXTH  CONGRESS— SECOND  SESSION.        129 

revenue  enough  to  pay  expenses.  Something  then  must 
be  done.  We  must  either  diminish  the  expenses,  or  in 
crease  either  the  debt  or  the  revenue.  The  idea  that  a 
"national  debt  is  a  national  blessing,"  is  an  absurd  one, 
and  should  never  have  been  tolerated.  He  next  asks,  can 
the  expenses  be  reduced?  After  pointing  out  various 
abuses  that  existed  and  sums  squandered,  he  said:  "If  we 
could  only  manage  these  matters  as  intelligent  business  men 
manage  theirs,  there  would  be  an  end  to  all  these  abuses. 
This  we  can  not  do,  because  parties  look  to  the  public 
money  as  the  reward  of  party  success." 

On  this  account,  he  seems  to  have  little  hope  of  reduced 
expenses.  "We  will  have  to  raise  sixty-five  or  seventy 
millions  the  next  fiscal  year.  Where  is  it  to  come  from? 
We  may  expect  from  land  sales  perhaps  $500,000  above 
expenses.  Let  us  give  away  the  land*  to  actual  settlers. 
It  is  the  only  honest,  the  only  noble,  the  only  manly  system 
of  disposing  of  the  public  lands.  Miscellaneous  items  from 
consuls,  fines,  and  forfeitures  may  reach  $1,000,000.  To 
import  duties  alone  can  we  look  with  confidence.  If  re 
quired,  we  might  raise  a  revenue  from  this  source  of  $100,- 
000,000."  It  was  Mr.  Sherman's  opinion  that  if  there 
should  be  an  importation  that  would  yield  $60,000,000 
from  the  present  rates  of  duty,  as  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  predicts,  it  would  prove  a  national  misfortune 
second  only  to  his  practice  of  living  upon  the  public  credit. 
He  approves,  in  the  main,  of  the  proposed  tariff,  because, 
as  far  as  possible,  it  changes  ad  valorem  for  specific  duties, 
thus  guarding  against  frauds. 

Another  reason  Mr.  Sherman  has  for  this  bill.  It  is 
framed  upon  the  idea  that  it  is  the  duty  of  the  Government 
in  imposing  taxes  to  do  as  little  injury  to  the  industry  of  the 
country  as  possible.  "You  may  make  a  tariff  to  raise 


130  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP.  vn. 

$40,000,000,  and  break  up  every  industrial  interest  of  the 
country.  The  Committee  of  Ways  and  Means  report  a 
tariff  which  will  raise  $65,000,000,  and  will  do  no  injury 
to  any  industrial  interest." 

The  House  passed  the  bill,  but  the  Senate  postponed  its 
consideration  to  the  next  session. 

Other  speeches  were  made  in  the  House  on  December 
10,  1859,  on  the  issue  of  $10,000,000  of  Treasury  notes, 
and  on  the  2d  of  February,  on  the  loan  of  $25,000,000 
already  noticed.  Both  of  these,  however,  were  temporary 
expedients.  We  shall  i^xt  find  Mr.  Sherman  in  the  Sen 
ate,  and  on  the  Finance  Committee,  where  he  belonged, 
and  commencing  in  earnest  his  great  life  work  for  his  coun 
try. 

When  President  Lincoln  entered  upon  his  office  in  1861, 
Senator  Chase  was  appointed  Secretary  of  the  Treasury, 
and  resigned  his  seat  in  the  Senate.  After  quite  a  pro 
tracted  contest,  in  which  Governor  Dennison  and  General 
Schenck  were  competitors,  Mr.  Sherman  was  elected,  and 
at  the  expiration  of  his  term  was  re-elected,  and  served 
from  March  4,  1861,  to  March  4,  1877,  when  he  was  made 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury  by  President  Hayes. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

MR.    SHERMAN   IN   THE   SENATE. 

THE  first  session  of  the  Thirty-seventh  Congress  (a  called 
session)  met  July  3,  1861,  and  closed  August  6th,  and  the 
second  session  (regular)  convened  December  2d,  Mr.  Sher 
man  serving  on  the  Finance  Committee,  of  which  Mr. 
Fessenden  was  chairman. 

The  Senate,  as  in  Committee  of  the  Whole,  resumed  the 
consideration  of  the  bill  to  authorize  the  issue  of  United 
States  notes,  and  for  the  redemption  and  funding  thereof, 
and  for  funding  the  floating  debt  of  the  United  States. 

The  only  point  in  doubt  was,  whether  these  notes  should 
be  made  a  legal  tender  in  payment  of  public  and  private 
debts.  Mr.  Sherman  was  in  favor  of  it,  but  only  on  the 
ground  of  necessity.  Without  this  quality  the  paper  would 
have  become  depreciated.  He  thought  there  was  power 
constitutionally  to  pass  it,  and  a  necessity  for  it.  "The 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  of 
New  York,  the  Committee  of  Public  Safety  of  New  York 
city,  the  Chambers  of  Commerce  of  the  cities  of  Philadel 
phia  and  Boston,  say  this  measure  is  indispensably  neces 
sary  to  maintain  the  credit  of  the  Government,  These 
men  understand  commercial  matters  better  than  most  of  us 
Senators." 

"  But,"  says  Mr.  Sherman,  "  I  do  not  intend  to  rest  here. 
I  desire  to  show  the  necessity  of  it  from  reason.  We  have 

(131) 


131'  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP, 

to  raise  and  pay  out,  before  the  first  day  of  July  next, 
8343,235,000,  $100,000,000  now  due  to  your  soldiers  and 
contractors.  Where  will  you  get  this  money  ?  The  banks 
have  loaned  all  they  can.  \Ve  can  not  get  it  from  taxa 
tion  for  six  months  at  least.  We  must  borrow  it.  The 
most  direct  way  would  be  to  put  your  bonds  upon  the  mar 
kets  of  the  world  and  sell  them  for  what  they  will  bring. 
Great  Britain  in  her  wars  with  Napoleon  sold  £420,000,000 
of  securities  for  £260,000,000.  She  contracted  a  debt  of 
£273  for  every  £100  received.  But  this  would  not  have 
carried  her  through  had  she  not  adopted  a  national  cur 
rency  of  paper  money — practically,  if  not  legally,  made  a 
legal  tender. 

"But  this  $100,000,000  will  be  exhausted,  and  what 
then?  Why,  then  we  can  sell  bonds;  but  if  we  offer  them 
now,  without  this  legal  tender,  they  will  not  bring  sixty 
cents  on  the  dollar.  But  it  is  said,  repeal  the  subtreasury 
law,  and  take  the  currency  of  the  State  banks ;  yes,  and 
bring  us  an  inflated  and  irredeemable  currency  of  the  most 
dangerous  character. 

"It  is  easy  to  criticise  this  bill.  I  dislike  to  vote  for  it. 
I  prefer  gold  to  paper  money,  but  there  is  no  other  resort. 
We  must  have  money  or  a  fractured  Government. 

"This  measure,  then,  is  necessary.  Have  we  the  con 
stitutional  power?  We  certainly  have,  if  it  be  necessary 
to  support  the  army  and  the  navy,  for  we  certainly  have 
power  to  do  that.  This  has  been  settled  by  precedent.  It 
was  done  in  the  war  of  1812,  in  the  Mexican  war,  we  re 
ceive  them  now  for  our  services,  and  we  pay  them  to  our 
soldiers  and  creditors.  But  this  power  is  embraced  in  that 
of  coining  money.  Congress  has  this  power,  and  is  not  pro 
hibited  from  issuing  bills  of  credit.  It  is  said  if  we  pass 
this  bill  we  do  injustice  to  our  creditors ;  and  we  certainly 


viii.]  MR.  SHERMAN  IN  THE  SENATE.  133 

do,  if  we  do  not  pass  it.  If  you  strike  out  this  legal-tender 
clause,  you  issue  notes  that  will  fall  dead  upon  the  mar 
ket,  and  the  Government  will  be  disgraced. 

"But  I  anticipate  from  this  beneficial  results.  It  will 
be-  the  beginning  of  a  national  currency,  for  which  the 
property  of  the  nation  is  pledged.  Then  you  can  sell  your 
bonds.  We  have  this  power,  but  it  must  not  be  used  too 
often." 

The  bill  passed  February  25,  1862. 

The  next  move  in  Mr.  Sherman's  grand  financial  scheme 
was  the  taxing  of  the  bank  bills.  After  explaining  the 
difference  between  banks  of  discount  'and  banks  of  issue, 
he  states  that  the  strongest  banks  issue  the  least  number 
of  bills,  and  the  weakest  issue  the  most,  and  quotes  Secre 
tary  Chase's  report  in  wliich  he  says:  "Circulation  is  com 
monly  in  the  inverse  ratio  to  solvency.  Well  founded  in 
stitutions,  of  large  and  solid  capital,  have  in  general  com 
paratively  little  circulation,  while  weak  corporations  almost 
invariably  seek  to  sustain  themselves  by  obtaining  from 
the  people  the  largest  possible  credit  in  this  form.  Under 
such  a  system,  or  lack  of  system,  great  fluctuations  and 
heavy  losses  in  discounts  and  exchanges  are  inevitable,  and 
not  unfrequently,  through  failures  in  the  issuing  institu 
tions,  considerable  portions  of  the  circulation  become  sud 
denly  worthless  in  the  hands  of  the  people. 

"Bank  after  bank,  filling  the  country  with  their  notes 
issued  upon  fictitious  capital,  explode,  and  the  note-holders 
suffer  the  entire  loss.  The  strongest  banks  do  not  need 
this  circulation,  the  weakest  do  not  deserve  it;  therefore 
tax  it  out  of  existence. 

"  The  taxation  of  bank  bills  is  simply  a  matter  of  equity. 
The  business  of  banking  is  now  heavily  taxed  by  our  ex 
cise  laws.  All  commercial  paper,  checks,  drafts,  orders, 


134  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP, 

bills  of  exchange,  foreign  and  inland  protests,  certificates, 
bonds,  powers  of  attorney,  are  heavily  taxed ;  then  why  not 
tax  bank  bills?  Private  bankers  must  procure  a  license  at 
the  expense  of  one  hundred  dollars,  but  banks  of  circula 
tion  are  exempted.  It  is  unjust  to  tax  every  thing  else, 
and  let  bank  bills  go  free. 

"  Bank  circulation  should  be  taxed  because,  by  the  exi 
gencies  of  war,  the  profits  arising  therefrom  have  been 
greatly  enhanced ;  and  by  the  suspension  of  specie  pay 
ments  great  temptations  are  afforded  to  excessive  issue." 

The  following  is  a  bit  of  secret  history  that  ought  to  be 
preserved  as  a  caution  to  the  Government  against  ever  re 
suming  the  old  State  bank  system! 

"I  say,"  said  Mr.  Sherman,  "they  ought  to  be  taxed 
more  heavily  than  other  employments  in  life,  Why,  sir, 
I  remember  very  well-— -and  some  of  the  Senators  here  re 
member  it  also— an  interview  which  was  sought  by  the 
bankers  of  our  chief  commercial  cities  —all  of  them  intelli 
gent  and  patriotic  men— with  the  Secretary  of  the  Treas 
ury,  to  which  they  invited  the  financial  committees  of  the 
two  Houses  to  hear  their  proposition  for  carrying  on  the 
financial  operations  of  the  Government.  We  all  went  to 
the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  and  the  propo 
sition  was  there  made  that  the  United  States  should  issue 
no  paper  money  whatever,  that  the  specie  clause  (as  it  is 
called  by  the  subtreasury  law)  should  be  repealed,  and 
that  wre  should  carry  on  the  war  upon  the  basis  of  the 
paper  money  of  the  banks,  legalizing  the  suspension  of 
specie  payments,  and  that  the  Government  should  issue  no 
paper,  except  upon  an  interest  of  six  per  cent,  or  higher, 
if  the  money  markets  of  the  world  demanded  more.  That 
was  their  plan  of  finance — the  plan  substantially  adopted 
in  the  war  of  1812,  and  which  has  been  condemned  by 


viii.]  MR.  SHERMAN  IN  THE  SENATE.  135 

every  statesman  since  that  time— a  plan  of  carrying  on  the 
operations  of  this  great  Government  by  an  association  of 
banks  over  which  we  had  no  control,  and  which  could  is 
sue  money  without  limit  so  far  as  our  laws  affected  it," 

The  objections  were  considered  next.  "  'This  tax  inter 
feres  with  vested  rights.'"  "But,"  said  Mr.  Sherman, 
"  all  property  is  held  subject  to  taxation  by  the  Govern 
ment,  and  it  has  the  right  to  designate  the  objects  of  taxa 
tion.  A  State  may,  by  law,  make  a  contract  with  indi 
viduals,  which  it  can  not  impair  by  taxation,  but  it  can 
not  thus  affect  the  power  of  Congress.  '  But  it  discrimi 
nates  against  banks/  So  does  every  tariff  and  revenue  act 
discriminate  in  the  objects  of  taxation.  If  such  are  right, 
this  can  not  be  wrong.  Is  two  per  cent,  too  high  on  bills, 
and  ten  per  cent,  on  fractional  currency  ?  On  the  former 
it  is  but  one-third  of  the  profit  derived  from  the  issue  of 
paper  money  without  interest,  the  principal  of  which  is 
not  now  paid  in  coin ;  on  the  latter  it  is  right  because  it  is 
issued  in  violation  of  law,  and  this  is  the  only  way  to  sup 
press  it," 

In  advocating  this  law,  however,  Mr.  Sherman  had  a 
higher  and  grander  purpose  than  merely  to  raise  a  reve 
nue  for  the  Government.  This  purpose  was  to  induce  the 
State  banks  to  substitute  for  their  paper  that  of  the 
national  banks,  then  just  authorized,  and  thus  replace  the 
variable  and  unreliable  currency  authorized  by  the  various 
States  in  the  Union,  by  a  sound  and  stable  national  cur 
rency.  He  refers  to  the  arguments  in  favor  of  establish 
ing  the  first  and  second  banks  of  the  United  States,  the 
first  by  Hamilton,  the  second  by  Madison,  as  follows:  "  It 
is,  however,  essential  to  every  modification  of  the  finances 
that  the  benefits  of  a  uniform  national  currency  should  be 
restored  to  the  community.  The  absence  of  the  precious 


136  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN  [CHAP. 

metals  will,  it  is  believed,  be  a  temporary  evil ;  but  until 
they  can  again  be  rendered  the  general  medium  of  ex 
change,  it  devolves  on  the  wisdom  of  Congress  to  provide 
a  substitute,  which  shall  equally  engage  the  confidence  and 
accommodate  the  wants  of  the  citizens  throughout  the 
Union." 

"  This,"  said  Mr.  Sherman,  "  is  a  statement  of  the  whole 
matter.  When  coin,  the  best  national  currency,  is  driven 
out  of  circulation  by  the  existence  of  wrar  or  other  extrane 
ous  circumstances,  then  it  is  the  duty  of  Congress  to  pro 
vide  substitutes."  Mr.  Sherman  might  have  referred  here 
to  the  message  of  President  Buchanan,  already  cited  in 
these  pages,  which  distinctly  outlined  what  has  since  be 
come  a  reality  in  our  national  bank  system,  with  all  the 
guards  thought  desirable  by  that  statesman. 

The  following  were  Mr.  Sherman's  objections  to  local 
banks : 

1.  The  great  number  and  diversity  of  bank  charters — 
sixteen  hundred  and  forty-two  banks  chartered  by  twenty- 
eight  States,  upon  widely  different  bases. 

2.  Their  unequal  distribution.     "  According  to  a  recent 
statement,"    he    says,    "the   circulation    of  banks  in  the 
Eastern    States    is    about     $130,000,000,    and    of    that 
amount    one-third    is    computed  to    be    in    the    Western 
country.     I  have  no  doubt  we  are  now  circulating  in  the 
West  $40,000,000  of  paper  money  issued  by  the  banks  in 
the  East,  and  we  Are  paying  to  the  East  the  interest  on 
this  $40,000,000." 

3.  Losses  by  counterfeiting  (which  we  can  not  prevent), 
on  banks  so  diversified,  are  immense,  and  fall  upon    the 
whole  people. 

4.  Loss  by  broken  banks  is  immense. 


Yin.]  MR.  SHERMAN   IN  THE  SENATE.  137 

5.  Loss  by  exchange  is  ordinarily  one  per  cent.,  and  the 
writer  has  known  it  to  be  fifteen  per  cent. 

6.  There  is  110  power  to  prevent  an  over-issue,  by  which 
"all  the  values  in  the  country  may  be  destroyed,  depend 
ing  upon  baseless  issue,  the  redemption  of  which  can  not 
be  guaranteed."     This  can  be  prevented  by  taxation. 

7.  "  The  system  of  local  bank  paper  destroys  all  hope  of  a 
national  currency,  and  defeats  a  plain  provision  of  the  Con 
stitution.     It  is  difficult  to  resist  the  conviction,  that  notes 
issued  by  State  corporations  are  bills  of  credit  prohibited 
by  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States."     Here  follows  an 
able  and  conclusive  legal  argument  against  the  right  of 
States  to  emit  bills  of  credit  or  authorize  corporations  to  do 
so. — Congressional  Globe. 

8.  Another  reason  for  doing  away  with  State  banks  is, 
that  "if  the  war   is   carried  on  with  all    this  circulation 
afloat,  when  it  ends  we  shall   be  overwhelmed  with  irre 
deemable  and  worthless  paper,  as  we  were  in  1815-20." 

9.  Mr.  Sherman   showed    how   it  would    interfere  with 
funding   the    national   debt,   and  of  course    prevent  "re 
sumption."      Here    his    forethought    was    laying    a    huge 
"  anchor  to  the  windward,"  to  use  when  the  storms  of  war 
should  cease,  and  the  result  shows  that  it  was  needed. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  displacement  of  State 
bank  circulation  by  a  national  currency,  brought  about  by 
this  tax,  has  saved  to  the  people  of  the  United  States,  to 
common  laborers  and  all  consumers,  more  than  enough  to 
pay  the  interest  on  our  war  debt.  Take  a  plain  statement, 
Here  is  a  laboring  man  that  receives  a  dollar  a  day  for 
three  hundred  days  in  the  year.  We  will  suppose  he  re 
ceives  it  in  bills  on  Ohio  banks,  and  one-half  is  expended 
for  goods  from  the  East.  These  bills,  upon  an  average, 
are  at  a  discount  of  three  per  cent.  Then  he  pays  four 

12 


138  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

dollars  and  fifty  cents  in  that  case,  where  he  pays  nothing 
now.  This,  by  all  the  consumers  in  the  United  States, 
would  more  than  pay  the  interest  on  our  war  debt. 

Whoever  has  lived  through  the  revulsions  of  1816-20, 
1837-42,  and  1857-60,  as  the  writer  has,  and  whoever  re 
members  the  tremendous  political  contests  about  the  old 
United  States  banks,  will  rejoice  that  we  have  a  stable  na 
tional  currency,  secured  by  United  States  bonds,  and  over 
which  the  Government  has  no  control,  except  to  limit  the 
amount  of  issues.  It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the  whole 
credit  of  all  this  belongs  to  Mr.  Sherman.  He  was  as 
sisted  by  other  able  men,  such  as  the  Hon.  S.  P.  Chase, 
and  especially  J.  Cooke  &  Co.  Without  these  Mr. 
Sherman  might  have  been  powerless,  and  without  a  man 
like  Mr.  Sherman  on  the  Finance  Committee  of  the  Sen 
ate,  to  lay  far-reaching  plans,  and  pilot  and  press  them, 
one  by  one,  through  Congress,  their  skill  would  have  been 
of  no  avail.  The  beauty  and  the  wonder  of  the  whole  proc 
ess  of  funding  and  refunding  the  national  debt,  and  the 
resumption  of  specie  payments,  are  that  they  are  parts  of  a 
well  connected  and  efficiently  conducted  scheme  from  the 
beginning  to  the  end — a  scheme  thoroughly  criticised  and 
sifted  at  every  step  by  friends,  and  resisted  by  foes,  but 
urged  on  and  carried  through  by  one  who  has  proved  him 
self  a  master  of  finance.  One  of  these  steps  has  just  been 
reviewed,  viz  ,  that  of  clearing  off  a  flood  of  local  bank 
paper. 

Now,  the  issue  of  United  States  notes  having  been  au 
thorized,  a  bill  to  provide  a  national  currency,  secured  by 
a  pledge  of  United  States  stock,  and  for  the  circulation  and 
redemption  thereof,  being  before  the  Senate,  the  following 
amendment  was  offered,  as  an  additional  section,  by  Mr. 
Powell,  of  Kentucky: 


VIIL]  MR.  SHERMAN  IN  THE  SENATE.  139 

" And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  each  and  every  banking 
association  organized  under  this  act  shall  be  and  is  hereby 
required  to  keep  in  its  vaults,  in  gold  and  silver  coin,  at  all 
times,  an  amount  equal  to  at  least  one-fourth  of  the  amount 
of  the  notes  it  is  authorized  to  issue." 

This,  it  will  be  noticed,  if  adopted  would,  at  that  time, 
have  prevented  the  organization  of  the  national  banks,  be 
cause  there  was  no.  specie  to  be  had.  War  had  driven  it 
out  of  the  country.  The  provisions  of  this  section  required 
that  amount  to  be  kept;  in  lawful  money. 

A  very  cursory  look  through  the  Congressional  Globe,  is 
sued  at  the  time  this  bill  was  under  consideration,  will 
show  that  Mr.  Sherman,  at  almost  every  step,  was  met 
with  suggestions,  motions,  and  amendments,  of  which  the 
above  is  a  specimen,  and  on  him  rested  mainly  the  defense 
of  the  bill,  and  its  ready  amendment  whenever  a  real  fault 
or  flaw  was  suggested,  from  any  and  every  quarter.  While 
Mr.  Sherman's  mind  is  characterized  by  remarkable  firm 
ness  and  promptness  of  decision,  there  is  nothing  like  ob 
stinacy  about  him.  However  deep  his  interest  in  the 
success  of  a  measure,  and  however  much  he  may  have 
cherished  it  as  a  scheme  of  his  own,  he  is  ever  open  to  con 
viction.  There  is  nothing  like  egotism  about  him.  His 
only  purpose  seems  to  be  to  adopt  the  best  plan,  whether 
his  own  or  another's.  The  character  of  this  amendment 
of  Senator  Powell  was  clearly  shown  as  being  an  attempt 
to  defeat  the  bill. 

Mr.  Sherman,  never  disposed  to  claim  any  credit  not  his 
own,  did  not  say,  as  he  might  have  done,  that  he  had  sub 
mitted  this  bill  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  and  it 
had  been  approved  by  him  and  every  member  of  the  Cabi 
net,  that  it  had  the  assent  of  the  great  body  of  the  people 


140  HON.  JOHN  SHEKMAN.  [CHAP. 

and  of  man}7  banks.  He  made  no  such  claim  for  his  com 
mittee,  even,  till  he  was  forced  to  do  so. 

Mr.  Collamer,  of  Vermont,  objected  to  the  bill,  upon 
the  supposition  that  it  was  proposed  by  the  Secretary  of 
the  Treasury.  Upon  this  objection  Mr.  Sherman  claimed, 
for  the  Finance  Committee,  the  paternity  of  the  bill,  but 
not  for  himself,  as  he  might  have  done,  for  the  manner  in 
which  he  defended  it  from  attacks  of  friend  and  foe,  woul'd 
render  it  evident,  that  if  it  were  not  his  own  child,  it  was 
very  nearly  related  to  him. 

Mr.  Collamer's  real  objection  was  to  doing  away  with  the 
local  banks,  and  this  was  just  what  Mr.  Sherman  wished 
to  do.  Mr.  Collamer  said,  under  this  system,  the  national 
banks  can  not  make  money.  "Then,"  said  Mr.  Sherman, 
"  they  will  not  harm  the  local  banks." 

Mr.  Collamer  says  the  Government  will  derive  no  bene 
fits  from  these  banks.  To  this  Mr.  Sherman  replied  by  re 
viewing  his  remarks  on  the  bill  to  tax  the  circulation  of 
the  banks,  made  the  day  before,  viz:  "The  Government  is 
making  market  for  its  bonds  by  having  fiscal  agencies 
throughout  the  United  States,  so  that  it  may  more  readily 
collect  its  debts,  and  by  saving  one-third  of  the  interest  on 
the  bonds  held  as  security  for  circulation,  and  by  securing 
to  the  people  of  the  United  States  a  uniform  national  cur 
rency,  which  can  be  passed  from  hand  to  hand,  in  all  parts 
of  the  country,  without  loss  by  exchange,  deterioration  or 
alteration." 

Mr.  Collamer  said:  "The  power  granted  by  this  bill 
would  render  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  a  very  danger 
ous  person." 

"  Dangerous  to  himself,"  said  Mr.  Sherman.  "  If  a  man 
have  power  to  appoint  twenty  to  responsible  positions,  he 
will  give  offense  to  five  hundred  by  disappointing  them." 


Mii.  SHERMAN  IN  THE  SENATE.  141 

Mr.  Collamer  thought  the  winding  up  of  local  banks 
would  be  a  dire  calamity. 

"  But,"  said  Mr.  Sherman,  "  they  are  wound  up  every 
twenty  year:?,  and,  in  that  time,  an  amount  equal  to  their 
whole  circulation  is  lost,  in  the  hands  of  the  people,  and 
here  is  a  plan  by  which  such  losses  may  be  avoided." 

But  so  strong  was  the  tide  against  this  bill  in  the  Senate, 
that  the  next  day,  February  10,  1863,  Mr.  Sherman  was 
again  constrained  to  address  that  body,  and  said: 

"  Mr.  President,  the  importance  of  the  subject  under 
consideration  demands  a  further  statement  than  has  yet 
been  made  of  the  principles  and  objects  of  this  bill.  I 
wished  to  avoid  the  labor  of  discussing  the  subject,  but  its 
discussion  seems  to  be  necessary.  I  shall  endeavor  to  con 
dense  what  I  have  to  say,  for  I  know  the  time  of  the  Sen 
ate  is  precious,  and  I  desire  to  get  a  vote  on  this  bill,  if 
practicable,  to-day." 

Mr.  Sherman  proceeded,  in  a  speech  of  nearly  twenty- 
two  closely-printed  pages,  octavo,  to  notice,  first,  surround 
ing  difficulties,  the  sources  from  which  the  bill  is  com 
mended,  a  review  of  measures  already  adopted,  viz  :  the 
issue  of  United  States  notes;  the  evils  of  State  bank  circu 
lation,  the  difficulties  of  an  exclusive  circulation  of  Treas 
ury  notes,  a  review  of  all  expedients  adopted  by  other 
nations,  as  well  as  our  own,  and  their  evils,  presents  a  dia 
gram  showing  ftie  effects  of  an  over-issue  of  paper  money. 
Then  he  calls  attention  to  this  bill — its  desirable  provisions, 
its  value  to  the  Government-  -a  safe  and  convenient  way  to 
dispose  of  the  State  banks,  a  convenient  agency  for  the 
Government,  identity  of  interest  between  bankers  and  the 
Government,  convenience  of  the  people,  the  ease  of  detect 
ing  counterfeits,  promotes  a  feeling  of  nationality,  banks 


142  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

themselves  will  be  benefited,  place  to  deposit  funds  by  col 
lectors  of  revenue,  etc. 

He  also  reviews  the  old  United  States  Bank,  and  the 
struggle  between  hard  money  politicians  and  all  banks,  the 
adoption  of  the  subtreasury  law,  the  necessity  of  some 
agency  in  borrowing  by  a  government,  reviews  the  idea 
that  interest  is  saved  by  issuing  Treasury  notes.  Though 
surrounded  with  difficulties,  to  meet  them  boldly,  and  foil 
them  honestly,  will  secure  safety,  and  closes  with  the  fol 
lowing  almost  prophetic  appeal : 

4 'Under  the  system  now  proposed,  with  the  sanction  of 
the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  the  Government  pays  but 
four  per  cent,  on  the  amount  of  bonds  filed  in  the  depart 
ment,  and  these  banks  provide  a  market  for  a  greater 
quantity  of  bonds.  The  banks,  under  this  system,  will  be 
the  means  and  the  medium  by  which  the  Government  can 
reacli  the  money  in  the  hands  of  the  people.  Those  who 
take  the  responsibility  of  defeating  a  measure  of  this  kind, 
unless  they  can  substitute  something  better  in  its  place 
than  the  unlimited  issue  of  paper  money,  will  take  a  re 
sponsibility  that  I  would  not  for  my  life  assume.  I  had 
doubts  about  this  system  ;  I  examined  them  carefully ;  I 
weighed  them  all,  and,  on  my  own  responsibility,  I  feel 
bound  to  say  that,  all  things  considered,  it  is  the  best  that 
can  be  adopted,  under  the  circumstances,  to  avoid  that 
which  will  be  inevitable  destruction. 

"  If  this  bill  is  defeated,  and  we  go  on  upon  the  system 
proposed  by  the  House  of  Representatives,  to  issue  an  in 
definite  quantity  of  paper  money,  without  restraint  or  lim 
itation,  the  price  of  every  thing  will  rise,  the  produce  that 
we  use  will  rise,  and  the  expenses  of  the  Government  will 
be  largely  increased.  Nothing  now  restrains  the  speculat 
ive  spirit  except  the  Senate.  Unless  we  can  devise  some 


vm.J  MR.  SHERMAN  IN  THE  SENATE.  143 

permanent  basis  for  a  national  currency,  some  wise  financial 
scheme,  our  people  will  be  embarked  in  reckless  spec 
ulation. 

"But,  sir,  when  your  United  States  notes  depreciate, 
they  carry  down  with  them  United  States  bonds.  Some 
Senators  'think  we  ought  to  go  on  issuing  these  notes  till 
the  mere  operation  of  supply  and  demand  will  compel  the 
people  to  convert  them  into  bonds.  Why,  sir,  it  is  the 
history  of  such  operations  that,  as  the  United  States  notes 
go  down,  the  bonds  go  down.  Stocks  that  I  know  to  be 
worthless— inflated  stocks  of  broken  railroad  corporations- 
are  now  selling  in  New  York  for  more  money  than  the  six 
per  cent,  bonds  of  the  United  States,  with  interest  payable 
in  gold  and  silver  coin.  It  is  one  of  the  tendencies  of  the 
times,  and  the  more  you  inflate  your  currency,  and  derange 
matters  by  the  issue  of  Government  paper  money,  or  bank 
paper  money,  based  upon  it,  the  more  you  derange  mat 
ters,  and  give  an  impetus  to  the  present  speculation.  But 
if,  by  a  wise  system,  you  induce  the  local  banks  gradually 
to  assume,  as  the  basis  of  their  circulation,  the  United 
States  notes,  and  limit  the  amount  of  those  notes  (for  that 
is  indispensable),  you  will  ftirnish  a  market  for  your  bonds, 
by  which  alone  you  can  hope  to  carry  on  the  operations  of 
this  war.  I  may  be  like  other  men  who  have  thought  a 
great  deal  on  a  particular  subject,  I  may  give  to  this  ques 
tion  an  undue  'importance,  but  with  me  it  is  all-important. 
The  establishment  of  a  national  currency,  and  of  this 
as  the  best  that  has  yet  been  devised,  appears  to  me  all- 
important.  It  is  more  important  than  the  winning  of  a 
battle.  In  comparison  with  this,  the  fate  of  three  million 
negroes,  held  as  slaves  in  the  Southern  States,  is  utterly  in 
significant.  I  would  see  them  slaves  for  life,  as  their 
fathers  were  before  them,  if  only  we  could  maintain  our 


J44  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAR 

nationality.  I  would  see  them  free,  disenthralled,  enfran 
chised,  on  their  way  to  the  country  from  which  they  came, 
or  settled  in  our  own  land,  in  a  climate  to  which  they  are 
adapted,  or  transported  anywhere  else,  rather  than  see  our 
nationality  overthrown.  I  regard  all  these  questions  as  en 
tirely  subordinate  to  this.  Sir,  we  can  not  maintain  our 
nationality  unless  we  establish  a  sound  and  stable  financial 
system,  and,  as  the  basis  of  it,  we  must  have  a  sound  na 
tional  currency.  So  it  seems  to  me.  I  may  be  wrong,  but, 
so  strong  is  my  conviction  on  this  subject,  that  I  believe 
the  passage,  of  this  bill,  by  which  our  financial  system  may 
be  harmonized,  and  by  which  we  shall  have  what  has  al 
ways  been  desired  by  the  statesmen  of  America — -a  sound 
national  currency — is  more  important  than  any  measure  we 
can  pass. 

"I  may  say  to  my  political  friends  that  it  receives  the 
sanction  of  every  member  of  the  administration,  and  par 
ticularly  the  earnest  sanction  of  the  gentleman  who  is 
placed  in  charge  of  the  Treasury  Department.  I  will  say 
to  my  political  adversaries  that  it  has  no  connection  with 
party  politics.  It  has  been  framed,  I  believe,  without 
reference  to  any  political  dispute,  simply  to  accomplish  that 
which  we  all  desire — to  place  our  national  credit  on  the 
surest  and  safest  foundation.  I  ask  them,  before  they  re 
cord  their  votes  against  it,  at  least  to  furnish  us  a  better. 
Shall  we  go  on  issuing  paper  money,  discarding  and  disar 
ranging  every  thing?  Shall  we  sell  our  bonds  in  the  market 
for  what  they  will  bring?  Great  Britain  did  it,  but  she 
established  a  sound  national  currenc*y  through  the  agency 
of  the  Bank  of  England  before  she  did  it ;  she  removed 
the  restrictions  from  the  Bank  of  England  before  she  com 
menced  that  system  of  selling  her  public  securities.  Then 
she  did  it.  Unless  you  can  tell  me  a  better  system,  I  ap- 


vm.]  MR.  SHERMAN  IN  THE  SENATE.  145 

peal  to  friends  and  opponents  to  vote  for  \his  bill,  because, 
whatever  differences  there  may  be  as  to  the  mode  of  ad 
ministering  the  government,  whatever  differences  there 
may  be  as  to  political  questions  growing  out  of  the  war,  on 
the  much-disputed  matter  of  the  condition  of  the  African 
race  in  this  country,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  we  all 
alike  are  interested  in  preserving  our  national  honor,  our 
national  credit,  our  national  existence.  If  these  are  lost, 
what  *a  sea  of  troubles'  is  before  us!  If  our  credit  is  gone, 
if  our  nationality  is  destroyed,  who  among  us  now  can  see 
the  end  of  the  difficulties  that  loom  up  in  the  future? 
Who  can  see  the  difficulties  that  will  arise,  if  a  boundary 
line  is  attempted  to  be  drawn  across  this  continent,  be 
tween  two  hostile  sections  ?  Who  can  see  the  difficulties 
before  us  if,  by  the  progress  of  time,  our  paper  currency 
becomes  what  my  friend  from  Kentucky  yesterday  said  it 
was — 'worthless  trash'?  Then,  sir,  the  Government  will 
be  subverted.  No  people  can  carry  on  a  long  war  except 
with  money,  and  you  can  not  get  money  unless  you  have 
public  faith,  unless  you  have  the  means  of  borrowing,  and 
unless  the  means  of  paying,  at  least  the  interest,  shall  be 
provided  for  by  a  wise  and  uniform  system, 

"  I  believe  that  if  the  financial  bill  reported  from  the 
Finance  Committee,  and  this  bill,  a  necessary  supplement, 
together  with  a  just  system  establishing  a  sinking  fund,  be 
passed,  we  can  carry  on  this  war,  even  with  the  enormous 
burden  thrown  upon  our  people.  Then  let  us,  in  addition 
to  this  system,  practice  economy.  I  know  that  sometimes 
Senators  have  thought  I  have  been  very  captious  on  that 
subject.  If  I  know  my  own  heart,  I  have  not  been  actu 
ated  by  any  unworthy  spirit,  but  simply  by  a  desire  to  save 
and  husband  the  resources  of  the  people  of  this  country,  to 
enable  them  to  meet  the  great  national  difficulties  that 

13 


140  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP.  vin. 

exist.  If  we  can  only  get  through  this  strait,  if  we  can 
see  our  way  out  of  this  war,  upon  the  basis  of  preserving 
the  Union,  there  is  nothing  that  can  be  said  too  highly  of 
the  future  of  this  country.  With  boundless  resources,  with 
an  enterprising  population,  placed  in  the  center  of  a  great 
continent,  in  a  temperate  climate,  history  does  not  afford, 
and  can  not  furnish,  a  parallel  of  our  capacity.  Our  ex 
ample  of  success  will  not  only  establish  our  republican  form 
of  government,  but  it  will  spread  the  spirit  of  our  repub 
lican  institutions  over  lands  that  are  yet  living  under  kings 
and  nobles  and  despots.  Sir,  I  therefore  do  press  upon 
the  attention  of  the  Senate  this  important  bill." 

The  whole  movement  of  displacing  the  local  State  banks, 
by  the  national  bank  system,  was  one  of  the  grand  results 
of  the  war  to  suppress  rebellion,  as  well  as  an  important 
agency  in  its  success,  and  Mr.  Sherman  was  the  man 
whose  force  of  character,  and  will,  and  foresight,  carried  it 
through.  It  may  be  said  that  Mr.  Sherman  was  greatly 
indebted  to  Mr.  Chase  and  Jay  Cooke  &  Co.,  and  that  he 
never  would  have  succeeded  but  for  them.  True,  the  skill 
and  efforts  of  such  men  as  these,  and  particularly  the  her 
culean  labors  of  Jay  Cooke  &  Co.,  were  essential,  and 
should  never  be  forgotten  or  underrated.  But  what  could 
Mr.  Cooke  have  done  without  the  agency  of  the  national 
banks?  Little  or  nothing.  Mr.  Sherman's  wisdom  con 
sisted  in  using  all  the  wise  suggestions  of  others,  together 
with  the  useful  lessons  of  history,  and  rejecting  advice  that 
was  worthless.  It  was  his  part  to  urge  the  necessary  meas 
ures  through  Congress.  This  he  did,  and  others  did  not. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

RESUMPTION    CONTEMPLATED. 

THE  grand  and  crowning  work  of  Mr.  Sherman,  in  pop 
ular  estimation,  has  been  the  resumption  of  specie  pay 
ments.  To  do  justice  to  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  it  will 
be  necessary  to  recount  the  steps  by  which  it  has  been 
achieved.  In  this  may  be  found  a  lesson  for  a  young  man 
in  ordering  his  personal  affairs,  or  a  statesman  in  conduct 
ing  those  of  the  public.  Mr.  Sherman  may  be  said  to 
have  been  shaping  his  course  unconsciously,  to  this  very 
end,  from  his  first  entrance  into  Congress.  It  seemed  to  be 
instinctive  with  him.  When  placed  at  the  head  of  the 
Committee  of  Ways  and  Means,  he  began  actively  to  make 
his  first  preparation,  as  though  it  devolved  on  him  to  pro 
vide  for  all  the  wants  and  necessities  of  the  nation.  His 
first  move  was  to  provide  for  the  debt,  by  the  issue  of 
stock  to  the  amount  of  $25,000,000.  This  bill  became 
a  law  February  8,  1861,  the  Morrill  tariff  bill  having 
failed  to  pass  the  Senate. 

The  next  move  was  made  on  February  13,  1862,  in 
passing  the  legal-tender  act,  when  Mr.  Sherman  showed  the 
necessity  of  that  feature  of  the  bill.  By  this,  $150,000,000 
of  Treasury  notes  were  authorized  and  made  a  legal  tender. 
On  January  10,  1863,  the  law  was  forcibly  advocated  for 
the  taxation  of  the  circulation  of  State  banks,  in  order 


148  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP, 

to  do  away  with  them  and  make  room  for  a  national  cur 
rency — a  step  more  important  than  he  then  knew  of  towards 
resumption.  On  the  9th  of  February,  1865,  another  step 
was  taken,  viz.,  the  organization  of  the  national  bank  sys 
tem,  which  was  most  earnestly  advocated  by  Mr.  Sherman 
in  a  speech  of  unusual  length.  On  the  27th  he  made 
another  speech,  showing  the  necessity,  on  the  part  of  the 
Government,  of  keeping  the  value  of  lawful  money  as 
nearly  as  possible  to  that  of  gold,  closing  with  these  words : 
4 'Our  duty  is  dry,  hard,  exacting,  but  it  will  be  more 
cheerful  when,  in  the  future,  our  self-sacrificing  patriotism, 
in  this  great  crisis,  shall  have  enabled  our  country  to  enter 
upon  its  new  career,  without  a  stain  upon  its  financial 
honor."  The  next  move  of  Mr.  Sherman  towards  keeping 
as  near  as  possible  to  the  gold  standard,  was,  by  a  most 
cheering  speech  already  quoted,  on  a  bill  to  provide  ways 
and  means  to  support  the  Government,  in  "the  Senate, 
April  9,  1866. 

On  May  22d  of  that  year,  was  made  a  powerful  effort  to 
fund  the  debt  of  the  United  States  at  a  lower  rate  of  in 
terest,  by  issuing  the  ten-forties,  January  27,  1867.  Mr. 
Sherman,  with  earnestness,  and  in  a  speech  of  remarkable 
clearness,  settled  the  question  of  a  protective  tariff,  and 
urged  an  increase  of  revenue  from  imports,  thus  bringing 
the  interest  clown,  and  the  revenue  up;  looking  still  to 
the  grand  result.  December  17th  of  the  same  year  the 
debt  was  $2,501,205,751.75,  as  exhibited  in  a  Senate 
report.  Mr.  Sherman's  plan  is  always  to  let  the  people 
know  exactly  how  they  stand,  to  make  the  income  as 
great  as  possible,  without  oppressive  taxation,  and  the 
expenses  as  light  as  possible  without  injury  to  the  service. 
In  February,  1868,  another  move  was  made  towards  fund 
ing  the  debt,  at  five  per  cent.,  when  Mr.  Sherman  made 


Ix.j  RESUMFflOX  CONTEMPLATED.  149 

his  noted  argument  to  show  that  it  was  possible  the  five- 
twenty  bonds  might  be  held  to  be  payable  in  greenbacks, 
provided  no  more  were  issued ;  but  afterwards  more  were 
issued,  and  then  Mr.  Sherman's  argument  told  the  other 
way.  On  January  27,  1869,  Mr.  Sherman  had  a  con 
troversy  with  Senator  Morton  upon  an  effort  made  towards 
specie  payments,  by  legalizing  contracts  payable  in  gold. 
He  showed  that  specie  payments  might  then  have  been 
resumed  by  increasing  the  bonded  debt  $100,000,000,  and 
the  interest  $5,000,000,  if  the  Government  and  the  banks 
only  were  concerned ;  but  then  it  would  bear  hard  on  the 
people  to  resume,  and  this  he  was  unwilling  to  favor.  He 
was  not  so  cruel  as  some  have  claimed.  He  could  put  off 
resumption,  ardently  as  he  desired  it,  to  spare  the  people 
from  certain  suffering.  On  the  27th  of  February,  1869, 
Mr.  Sherman  was  exceedingly  earnest,  urging  through  the 
Senate  a  bill  to  strengthen  the  public  credit,  and  proposed 
the  following  methods:  1..  To  legalize  gold  contracts; 

2.  To  set  aside  $140,000,000.  to  redeem  the  public  debt; 

3.  To  tie  the  fate  of  the  greenbacks  to  that  of  the  bonds ; 

4.  To  authorize  free  banking.     The  House  bill  before  the 
Senate  proposed  to  make  all  obligations  payable  in  gold, 
except  where  it  was  otherwise  specially  provided  for,  and 
though  Mr.  Sherman's  opinion  was  that  the  five-twenties 
could   he  paid    in  greenbacks,  from  motives  of  policy  he 
thought  it  better  to  say  they  should  be  paid  in  gold.     This 
was  advocated  and  disposed  of,  to  make  way  for  another 
bill  soon   to   be   offered,   and   another  step   to   be   taken 
towards  specie  payments. 

A  month  later,  February  28,  1870,  the  untiring  and 
ever- persistent  financier  addressed  the  Senate  in  a  long 
speech  upon  another  bill,  looking  towards  specie  payments — 
"  a  bill  to  authorize  the  refunding  and  consolidation  of  the 


150  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

national  debt,  to  extend  banking  facilities,  and  to  establish 
specie  payments."  This  was  the  purpose.  The  measures 
proposed  were,  the  form  of  bonds  into  which  it  was  pro 
posed  to  fund — i.  e. ,  of  three  classes :  ten-twenties,  fifteen- 
thirties,  and  twenty-forties — the  necessary  agencies  to  be 
^employed,  the  reduction  and  ultimate  payment  of  the  debt, 
and  some  changes  in  our  bank-ing  laws. 

After  giving  the  history  of  successive  steps  in  the  opera 
tions  of  a  financial  character  since  the  beginning  of  the 
war,  in  his  remarks  on  this  bill,  which  huve  already  been 
narrated  in  these  pages,  he  proceeds  to  state  some  circum 
stances  that  have  not  been  noted  as  yet,  and  one  is  remark 
able  as  showing  his  readiness  to  acknowledge  an  error 
when  he  makes  one,  and  also  how  few  he  makes. 

"Now,  Mr.  President,"  said  Mr.  Sherman,  "  there  is  no 
doubt  that  during  and  since  the  war  we  made  some  errors, 
and  were  guilty  of  some  departures  from  true  financial 
principles.  I  say  this  in  all  kindness,  because  I  do  not 
mean  to  evade  my  share  of  the  responsibility,  and  I  now 
wish  to  point  out  some  of  those  errors.  In  the  fall  of  1864, 
a  security  of  a  new  character  was  issued  that  I  think  was 
not  authorized  by  law.  I  refer  to  the  seven-thirty  bonds, 
which  were  issued,  running  three  years,  with  the  right,  on 
the  part  of  the  holder,  at  the  end  of  three  years,  to  convert 
them  into  five-twenty  bonds,  payable,  principal  and  interest, 
in  gold.  At  the  time  I  thought,  and  I  still  think,  that  by 
a  fair  construction  of  the  law  as  it  then  stood,  there  was  no 
power  in  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  give  the  holder 
of  those  seven-thirties  the  right  to  fund  them  in  five- 
twenty  bonds.  It  was  a  departure  from  the  financial  policy 
of  the  Government,  to  provide  only  for  short  loans.  The 
result  was,  at  the  close  of  the  war,  to  continue  a  loan,  bear 
ing  six  per  cent,  in  gold,  for  a  longer  period  than  was 


ii.]  RESUMPTION  CONTEMPLATED.  151 

authorized  by  law.  By  referring  to  the  act  of  June  30, 
1864,  under  which  this  loan  was  made,  you  will  see  that 
the  option  was  given  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to 
issue  either  five-twenty  bonds  or  seven-thirty  notes.  Either 
of  these  securities  might  be  issued  at  his  option ;  but  there 
is  no  authority  in  the  law  of  June  30,  1864,  allowing 
their  exchange  by  holders  of  the  notes.  The  amount  of4 
notes  issued  in  the  fall  of  1864  was  only  $700,780,250;  all 
the  rest  of  our  indebtedness  at  that  time  was  in  currency 
securities." 

For  this,  however,  Mr.  Sherman  did  not  share  in  the 
responsibility. 

' '  The  next  error  which  affected  our  financial  operations, 
and  affects  them  now  [1870],  is  the  error  made  after  the 
war  was  over,  by  the  Secretary,  of  continuing  this  form  of 
oppressive  securities.  After  the  war  was  over,  and  after 
the  last  rebel  had  laid  down  his  arms,  there  were  issued 
about  $600,000,000  of  seven-thirty  notes,  convertible,  at 
the  pleasure  of  the  holder,  into  five-twenty  bonds.  There 
is  now  no  doubt  that  if,  immediately  after  the  war  was 
over,  a  loan  bearing  a  lower  rate  of  interest,  payable  in 
gold — a  five  per  cent,  ten-forty  bond,  for  instance — had 
been  put  upon  the  market,  all  the  floating  debt  of  the 
United  States  might  have  been  converted  into  it.  On  the 
1st  of  March,  1865,  when  the  war  was  practically  at  an 
end,  the  amount  of  gold-bearing  bonds  did  not  much  exceed 
one  billion  dollars,  and  all  the  rest  of  our  indebtedness  was 
in  currency  securities.  But  this  was  mistaken  action.  The 
currency  securities  were  converted  into  a  six  per  cent,  five- 
twenty  bond,  and  the  period  of  payment  was  postponed 
eight  years  by  allowing  their  conversion  at  the  end  of 
three  years." 


152  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

Nor  of  this  does  Mr.  Sherman  take  any  part  of  the 
responsibility,  but  of  the  next  he  does. 

"  But,  Mr.  President,  Congress  itself  was  guilty  of  some 
errors,  and  one  or  two  very  great  omissions  in  financial 
legislation,  after  the  war  was  over.  The  most  unfortunate 
one  was  the  act  of  April  12,  1866.  By  this  act  Con 
gress  authorized  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  fund  all 
the  floating  indebtedness  of  the  United  States,  the  com 
pound  interest  notes,  £he  five  per  cent,  notes,  the  temporary 
loan  certificates,  and  all  the  then  floating  debt,  into  six  per 
cent,  gold  bonds,  or  into  any  form  of  bond  authorized  by 
previous  acts,  which  covered,  as  a  matter  of  course,  the  six 
per  cent,  five-twenty  bonds. 

"  Thus,  by  a  general  sweeping  provision  contained  in  this 
act,  was  legalized  and  authorized  the  conversion  of  the 
whole  currency  debt,  except  United  States  notes,  into  five- 
twenty  bonds,  thus  swelling  largely  the  five-twenties. 
Whatever  opinion  may  have  been  entertained  as  to  the 
state  of  our  finances  in  1865,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  on 
the  12th  of  April,  1866,  it  was  not  wise,  not  politic,  to  fund 
the  debt  into  a  six  per  cent.  bond.  The  effect  of  this  legis 
lation  was  at  once  to  sever  the  bond  from  the  note.  All 
forms  of  indebtedness  except  the  notes  were  allowed  to  be 
funded  into  bonds.  This  at  once  checked  the  appreciation 
of  the  notes.  Gold  had  greatly  lowered  in  price,  till  in 
April,  1866,  when  this  act  was  passed,  it  was  only  worth 
twenty-five  and  one-half  per  cent,  premium ;  but,  from  the 
passage  of  this  act,  it  immediately  rose,  and  in  July  aver 
aged  fifty  per  cent.  For  years  afterward  gold  never 
reached  the  minimum  of  twenty-five  per  cent.,  but  ad 
vanced,  fluctuating  backward  and  forward.  Paper  money 
was  then  entirely  detached  from  the  rest  of  the  debt  of  the 
United  States,  and  became  of  less  market  value  than  any 


ix.]  RESUMPTION  CONTEMPLATED.  153 

other  form  of  our  securities.  During  the  past  year,  under 
a  different  policy,  the  currency  has  reached  much  nearer 
the  par  of  gold  than  before.  *  *  *  This  act,  and  the 
failure  of  Congress  to  provide  any  mode  for  redeeming  or 
retiring  the  greenbacks,  and  afterwards  the  repeal  of  even 
the  limited  authority  granted  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Treas 
ury  to  retire  greenbacks,  undoubtedly  kept  our  notes  de 
preciated  from  day  to  day,  fluctuating  in  value. 

"Mr.  President,  another  great  error  which,  I  think,  we 
must  all  admit  Congress  has  been  guilty  of,  is  the  long  de 
lay  in  passing  a  bill  to  provide  for  the  funding  of  the  pub 
lic  debt.  There  has  been  no  time  during  the  last  three 
years  when  large  masses  of  the  existing  debt  could  not 
have  been  funded  into  five  per  cent,  bonds,  and  the  actual 
saving  by  this  would  have  been  very  large  indeed. 

"The  first  funding  bill,  of  April,  1866— five  per  cent, 
ten-forty  bonds — was  defeated  by  amendments.  The  sec 
ond,  December,  1867— a  five  per  cent,  domestic  and  four 
and  a  half  foreign  loan — was  defeated  by  the  pocket  veto 
of  President  Johnson,  and  that  of  the  previous  session  by 
innumerable  conflicting  opinions." 

Such  is  a  specimen  of  some  of  the  difficulties  Mr.  Sher 
man  had  to  contend  with  in  his  progress  towards  resump 
tion.  In  the  above  is  clearly  seen  the  reason  of  his  urging 
what  he  conceived  to  be  the  legal  right  to  pay  five-twenties 
in  greenbacks,  viz :  in  order  to  keep  them  as  near  to  the 
bonds  as  possible  in  value,  and,  therefore,  nearer  gold.  In 
this  bill  was  introduced  a  provision " that  four  per  cent, 
bonds  might  be  paid  for  in  greenbacks.  Another  difficulty 
he  met  was  the  objection  of  the  national  banks.  On  this 
bill  Mr.  Sherman  made  two  speeches,  occupying  forty-four 
closely-printed  octavo  pages,  and,  besides  that,  was  on  the 


154  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP.  i*. 

floor  of  the  Senate,  with  remarks,  explanations,  etc.,  eighty 
times. 

Let  any  one  look  through  the  Congressional  Globe,  and 
then  see  if  he  can  say,  in  his  conscience,  that  it  is  "  a  for 
tuitous  concurrence "  of  circumstances  that  has  enabled 
Mr.  Sherman  to  bring  about  resumption.  Weary  days  and 
anxious  nights,  hard  study  and  indefatigable  work,  for 
nearly  nine  years  already,  have  been  required  to  prepare 
the  way.  When  Stevenson  built  the  tubular  bridge  over 
the  Menai  Straits,  it  may  have  seemed  easy  for  him  to  lie 
on  the  bank,  smoke  his  cigar,  and  see  the  great  iron  tube, 
five  hundred  feet  long,  prepared  for  a  railroad  track,  go 
into  its  place,  but  it  must  have  tasked  his  genius  to  the 
utmost  to  have  planned  all  this  beforehand.  The  difference 
is,  Mr.  Stevenson  had  men  to  work  with  that  would  obey ; 
Mr.  Sherman  had  not. 

But  we  have  not  reached  resumption  yet.  This  funding 
bill  passed  July  14,  1870.  The  great  panic  of  1873  is  to 
come  yet,  and  nine  more  years  of  hard  toil,  deep  study, 
and  earnest  talk. 


CHAPTER  X. 

PREPARING   FOR   RESUMPTION. 

THE  Senate  had  under  consideration  a  bill  from  the 
House  to  amend  an  act  to  provide  ways  and  means  to  sup 
port  the  Government,  and  so  to  extend  it  as  to  authorize 
the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  at  his  discretion,  to  receive 
any  Treasury  notes,  or  other  obligations  issued  under  any 
act  of  Congress,  whether  bearing  interest  or  not,  in  ex 
change  for  any  description  of  bonds  authorized  by  that  act, 
either  in  the  United  States  or  elsewhere,  to  such  an 
amount,  in  such  a  manner,  and  at  such  rates  as  he  may 
think  advisable,  for  lawful  money  of  the  United  States,  or 
for  any  Treasury  notes,  certificates  of  indebtedness,  etc., 
the  proceeds  to  be  used  to  retire  the  Treasury  notes,  to  the 
amount  of  $10,000,000  in  six  months,  and  $4,000,000  per 
month  thereafter.  Here  Mr.  Sherman,  by  his  wise  fore 
sight,  began  to  "put  up  the  fence  "  to  avoid  a  crash.  He 
says : 

"  If  Senators  will  read  the  bill,  they  will  find  that  it  con 
fers  on  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  greater  powers  than 
have  ever  been  conferred,  since  the  formation  of  the  Gov 
ernment,  upon  any  Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  This  bill 
authorizes  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  sell  any  kind  of 
bonds,  without  limit,  except  as  to  the  rate  of  interest.  It 
does  not  limit  him  to  any  form  of  security.  The  security 

(155)     * 


13o  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

may  run  for  any  period  within  forty  years.  He  may  sell 
the  securities  at  less  than  par,  without  limitation  as  to  rate. 
He  may  sell  them  in  any  form  he  chooses.  He  may  put 
them  in  form  of  Treasury  notes  or  bonds,  the  interest  paya 
ble  in  gold  or  in  paper  money.  He  may  undertake,  under 
the  provision  of  this  bill,  to  fund  the  whole  debt  of  the 
United  States.  The  only  limit  as  to  the  amount  is  the 
debt  itself,  now  $2,700,000,000." 

Mr.  Sherman  could  see  no  necessity  for  conferring  this 
extraordinary  power,  and  did  not  think  it  wise  to  do  so. 
The  precedent  would  be  bad,  and  changes  in  revenue 
might  occur  that  would  render  it  a  serious  inconvenience. 
While  the  House  had  stipulated  that  only  84,000,000  of 
legal  tenders  should  be  destroyed  each  month,  yet  there 
was  nothing  in  the  bill  to  prevent  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  from  hoarding  them,  and  thus  causing  a  con 
traction  of  the  circulation,  which  the  House  of  Representa 
tives  intended  to  prevent.  He  was  inclined  to  believe  that 
was  the  Secretary's  purpose.  This  is  indicated  by  the  ac 
cumulating  balances  in  the  Treasury. 

Here  is  a  passage  in  Senator  Sherman's  remarks  on  this 
subject,  to  which  the  attention  of  all  parties  is  especially 
invited.  It  shows  the  spirit  of  the  man,  that  he  knew 
whereof  he  spoke,  that  in  this  whole  scheme  of  finance  he 
understood  himself,  his  subject,  and  the  country  thoroughly. 
In  reading  over  these  remarks  made  in  the  Senate  one  year 
after  the  war  closed,  it  seems  more  like  reading  the  history 
made  on  January  1st,  1879,  than  a  prediction. 

Mr.  Sherman  said:  "I  repeat,  I  do  not  wish  to  call  in 
question  the  integrity  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 
The  Senator  interjects,  by  saying,  'we  must  look  ahead.' 
There  is  just  the  difference  between  him  and  me.  I  say 
the  future  for  this  country  is  hopeful,  buoyant,  joyous. 


X.]  PREPARING  FOR  RESUMPTION.  157 

We  shall  not  have  to  beg  of  foreign  nations,  or  even  of 
our  own  people,  money  within  two  or  three  years.  Our 
national  debt  will  be  eagerly  sought  for,  I  have  no  doubt. 
I  take  a  hopeful  view  of  the  future.  I  do  riot  wish  now 
to  cripple  the  industry  of  the  country,  by  adopting  the 
policy  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  as-  he  calls  it,  by 
reducing  the  currency,  by  crippling  the  operations  of  the 
Government,  when  I  think  that  under  the  probability  of 
affairs  in  the  future,  all  this  debt  will  take  care  of  itself, 
I  believe  that  if  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  would  do 
nothing  in  the  world,  except  simply  sit  in  his  chair,  meet 
the  accruing  indebtedness,  and  issue  his  treasury  warrants, 
this  debt  will  take  care  of  itself,  and  will  fund  itself  at  four 
or  five  per  cent,  before  long." 

The  writer  believes  that  many  will  be  surprised  to  learn 
that  Secretary  Sherman  said  the  following,  in  the  United 
States  Senate,  on  April  6th,  1866: 

"In  my  judgment,  the  amount  of  legal  tenders  now  out 
standing,  is  not  too  much  for  the  present  condition  of  the 
country.  I  expect  to  come  back  to  specie  payments,  and 
I  expect  to  see  gold  approach  the  level  and  standard  of 
our  paper  money,  without  any  material  reduction  of  our 
currency.  Our  currency  now  is  less  than  the  currency  of 
England  or  France,  according  to  the  tables  we  have.  Our 
whole  currency  now  is  $704,000,000,  excluding  the  inter 
est-bearing  legal  tenders,  which  do  not  enter  at  all  into  it, 
and  which  can  not  be  found,  and  including  bank  circula 
tions  of  every  kind.  Four  hundred  and  fifty  millions  of  it 
consist  of  United  States  notes  and  fractional  currency. 
Then  there  are  over  $250,000,000  of  bank  currency,  in 
cluding  the  notes  of  State  banks,  outstanding,  which  are 
being  rapidly  retired.  The  limit  of  the  national  bank  cur 
rency  is  8300,000,000,  so  that  the  whole  currency  can  not 


158  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

exceed  $750,000,000.  I  do  not  consider  the  compound  in 
terest  notes  as  any  thing,  because  they  are  not  in  circula 
tion." 

Again,  he  says:  "In  regard  to  going  back  to  specie 
payments,  when  did  ever  a  nation  travel  toward  specie 
payment,  as  rapidly  as  this  country  has  done,  without  a 
reduction  of  the  currency?  Here  is  a  significant  fact,  that 
when  gold  was  280,  our  currency  was  $550,000,000;  and 
nowT,  when  our  currency  is  over  8700,000,000,  gold  is  130, 
and  is  going  down,  and  down,  and  no  power  in  this  world 
can  prevent  its  going  down.  This  fact  shows  that  the 
mere  amount  of  legal  tender  outstanding  does  not  affect 
the  value  of  gold." 

It  may  have  been  no  great  trick  to  resume  specie  pay 
ment.  Others  thought  it  would  be ;  Mr.  Sherman  thought 
and  believed  it  would  not.  He  said  so  in  his  speech. 
This  was  not  made  up  after  resumption,  but,  according  to 
the  Congressional  Globe,  was  said  in  the  Senate  nearly  thir 
teen  years  before  he  could  persuade  Congress  to  authorize 
it.  It  was  either  an  acute  guess,  or  remarkable  presci 
ence.  But  if  it  was  a  guess,  it  was  one  of  a  long  proces 
sion,  and  every  one  has  been  unerringly  verified. 

This  bill  was  passed  against  Mr.  Sherman's  vote,  and 
when  $44,000,000  legal  tenders  had  been  retired,  the  na 
tion  cried,  Enough.  The  law  was  repealed  January  9, 
1868,  and  the  Senator  triumphed, 

In  December,  1867,  Mr.  Sherman,  as  Chairman  of  the 
Finance  Committee,  made  a  report  on  the  following  sub 
jects  referred  to  them  in  the  President's  message : 

1.  The  funding  of  the  public  debt,  and  as  an  incident 
to  it,  the  redemption  of  the  five-twenty  bonds. 

2.  The  taxation,  State  and  national,  of  the  public  secu 
rities. 


x.]  PREPARING  FOR  RESUMPTION.  159 

3.  The  redemption  and  conversion  of  the  United  States 
notes,  or  legal-tender  currency. 

This  report  is  alluded  to  here  for  the  purpose  of  stating 
that  it  is  the  report  of  a  committee,  and  not  a  speech  of 
Mr.  Sherman's.  It  contains  an  intimation  that  there  is  a 
redundant  currency.  But  Mr.  Sherman  did  not  think  so. 

This  report,  while  it  intimates  that  the  five-twenties 
might  be  understood  to  be  payable  in  legal  tenders,  does 
not  decide  the  question.  But  it  expresses  the  opinion  of 
the  committee,  and  not  Mr.  Sherman.  As  to  the  amount 
of  legal  tenders  desirable  for  the  business  of  the  country, 
we  have  seen  that  he  disagreed  with  the  committee.  As 
to  how  the  five-twenty  bonds  were  payable,  his  view  was, 
that  they  might  be  paid  in  legal  tenders  if  they,  the  legal 
tenders,  were  not  to  be  issued  in  excess  of  $450,000,000. 

As  in  this,  Mr.  Sherman  has  been  supposed  by  some  to 
have  leaned  to  the  greenback  theory,  and  as  it  is  the  pur 
pose  of  these  pages  to  hide  nothing  of  his  course,  but  to 
present  him  just  as  he  is,  and  as  his  argument  on  this  sub 
ject  is  a  fair  specimen  of  clear,  logical  reasoning,  and 
shows  his  readiness  to  yield  to  truth  and  logic,  it  is  here 
presented.  This  is  due  to  Mr.  Sherman,  to  prevent  a  mis 
interpretation  of  his  views  to  his  disadvantage.  Mr.  Sher 
man  said : 

"Mr.  President:  The  question  is,  whether  the  bonds 
issued  since  the  legal-tender  act  took  effect,  may  be  paid  in 
legal  tenders.  Upon  this  question,  I  may  as  well  state  now, 
the  Committee  on  Finance  do  not  pass  any  opinion,  and 
in  the  observations  I  make  on  this  point,  I  speak  for  my 
self,  not  for  them.  They  deem  the  occasion  a  proper  one 
to  offer  an  exchange  to  the  public  creditor,  leaving  for  the 
future  to  settle  the  result  of  a  refusal.  The  act  which  pro 
vided  for  the  legal  tenders,  also  provided  for  the  five- 


16.)  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

twenty  bonds.  However,  the  notes  were  issued  before  the 
bonds;  the  notes  were  all  outstanding  before  a  single  bond 
was  issued.  Now  the  legal-tender  clause  provides  that — 
4  such  notes  herein  authorized,  shall  be  receivable  in  pay 
ment  of  all  taxes,  internal  duties,  excises,  debts  and  de 
mands  of  every  kind,  due  to  the  United  States,  except 
duties  on  imports,  and  of  all  claims  and  demands  against 
the  United  States,  of  every  kind  whatsoever,  except  for  in 
terest  upon  bonds  and  notes,  which  shall  be  paid  in  coin, 
and  shall  also  be  lawful  money  and  a  legal  tender  in  pay 
ment  of  all  debts,  public  and  private,  within  the  United 
States,  except  duties  on  imports  and  interest  as  aforesaid.' 

"Does  not  this  act  in  so  many  words  declare  that  while 
coin  shall  be  paid  for  the  interest  of  the  public  debt,  yet 
the  notes  provided  by  this  act  shall  be  a  lawful  tender  in 
payment  of  all  debts? 

"It  is  admitted  that  if  the  matter  stood  on  the  legal- 
tender  clause,  there  w^ould  be  no  doubt— there  could  be  no 
resisting  the  conclusion — that  the  legal  contract  between  the 
Government  and  the  bond-holder  was  that  the  interest 
should  be  paid  in  com,  and  the  principal  should  be  paid  in 
the  legal- tenders  specified  by  this  act." 

There  were  other  provisions  of  this  law  which  led  Mr. 
Sherman  to  conclude  that  it  could  not  have  been  the  ex 
pectation  of  Congress  that  these  bonds  should  be  paid  oth 
erwise  than  in  coin.  For  instance,  the  issue  of  legal-tenders 
was  restricted  to  8150,000,000,  which  could  never  have 
been  expected  to  be  enough  to  redeem  8500,000,000  of 
bonds. 

"But  no  bonds  were  issued  under  this  act.  Every  one 
of  the  restrictions  as  to  the  amount  of  legal-tenders  was 
repealed  before  the  bonds  were  negotiated."  None  could 
be  sold. 


x>]  PREPARING  FOR  RESUMPTION.  161 

"After  long  consideration — for  the  subject  was  debated 
over  and  over  again — the  Committee  on  Finance  agreed 
upon  the  act  of  March,  1863.  That  act  repealed  the  limit 
as  to  the  amount  of  circulation,  and  raised  it  to  $450,- 
000,000.  It  also  took  away  the  right  to  convert"  (i.  e., 
greenbacks  into  five-twenties),  "which  the  Secretary  said 
was  the  other  restriction  that  prevented  the  sale  of  the 
bonds,  and  limited  the  right  of  the  holders  to  convert  the 
outstanding  greenbacks  to  the  first  of  July  then  next.  By 
this  legislation  the  limitations  which  prevented  the  sale  of 
the  first  five-twenty  bonds  were  repealed,  and  then,  for  the 
first  time,  this  loan  was  taken.  Then  it  was  that  an 
agency  was  organized,  and  means  were  taken  to  spread  the 
bonds  over  the  country,  and  they  were  sold;  but  they  were 
not  sold  until  these  restrictions  were  removed,  and  they 
were  sold  upon  a  basis  of  $450,000,000  without  the  right 
of  redemption  (conversion?),  with  no  privilege  whatever, 
except  that  of  being  receivable  for  Government  taxes. 
That  was  the  state  of  the  law  upon  which  the  legal  right 
of  the  holders  of  the  five-twenties  rests. 

"It  is  true  that  various  agents  of  the  Government  stated 
that  these  bonds  would  be  paid  in  coin,  and  that  creates 
the  embarrassment  in  regard  to  this  matter;  that  always 
affected  my  mind  more  than  any  legal  difficulty  in  the  way, 
because  I  think  the  nation  is  not  only  bound  to  observe  the 
law,  but  it  is  bound  to  pay  a  reasonable  degree  of  respect 
to  the  representations  made  at  the  time  these  bonds  were 
sold.  It  is  true  as  a  matter  of  law  that  no  agent  could 
vary  the  contract,  that  every  man  who  bought  these  bonds 
bought  them  upon  the  face  of  the  law,  and  not  upon  the 
mere  advertisements  of  agents.  Still  every  wi«e  legislator 
would  consider  the  extent  of  those  representations,  and 
how  far  they  affected  the  public  mind. 


It'd  LION.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

''Mr.  President,  I  will  not  follow  this  matter  further, 
because  it  is  not  necessary  for  my  argument  that  I  should 
do  so ;  but  I  submit  to  Senators  whether  the  presentation 
of  the  law  and  the  facts  in  regard  to  the  five-twenty  loan 
doe-  not  raise  a  reasonable  doubt  upon  which  honest  men 
may  disagree.  All  that  is  necessary  for  my  argument,  is 
to  show  that  there  is  such  a  doubt  as  to  the  manner  of 
paying  these  bonds.  If  such  doubt  exists,  it  ought  to  be 
removed,  or  some  other  bond  substituted,  in  order  that  this 
unsettled  question  may  not  poison  (he  public  credit." 

The  law  proposed  by  the  Committee  was  a  compromise 
to  remove  this  doubt.  To  offer  ten-forty  bonds  at  five  per 
cent.,  payable,  principal  and  interest,  in  coin,  exempt  from 
taxation ;  to  provide  for  sinking  the  public  debt  $135,- 
000,000  a  year ;  to  receive  six  per  cent,  five-twenties  for 
the  ten-forties,  and  provide  for  the  conversion  of  green 
backs  into  five  per  cents,  until  resumption  should  take 
place. 

There  were  various  reasons  why  Mr.  Sherman  should 
have  made  this  speech  at  that  time  without  imputing  to 
him  any  disposition  to  pander  to  the  greenback  furor. 

1.  It  was  desirable  that  holders  of  five-twenties  should 
understand  precisely  how  doubtful  their  claim  to  be  paid 
in  coin  might  be,  in   order  to  induce  them  voluntarily  to 
exchange  them  for  ten-forties,  as  well  as  for  greenbacks. 

2.  It  was  important  to  allay  in  the  public  mind  any  irri 
tation,  or  envy  that  might  exist,  against  the  holders  of  the 
six  per   cent,  bonds,  as   receiving  an  exorbitant  interest, 
above  what  others  could  get. 

3.  It  was  important  to  squelch  at  once  the  rising  clamor 
for  an  unlimited  issue  of  greenbacks. 

The  following  will  show  the  manner  in  which  the  favor 
ers  of  an  unlimited  is«ue  of  legal  tenders  were  met : 


x.]  PREPARING  FOR  RESUMPTION.  K;:; 

"The  second  mode  of  paying  off  the  five-twenty  bonds 
is  proposed  by  partisans,  and  consists  in  a  new  issue  of 
greenbacks.  This  is  \a  plausible  and  dangerous  device. 
No  man  can  justify  it.  Why?  Because  the  very  nets 
under  which  these  bonds  \vere  issued  contain  limitations 
which  we  can  not  and  dare  not  exceed.  These  limitations 
were  put  in  every  loan  act,  and  finally  embodied  in  a 
guaranty,  in  the  act  of  June  30,  1864,  to  which  I  will  now 
refer.  The  limitation  contained  in  the  last  preceding  act, 
that  of  March  3,  1863,  in  force  when  the  five-twenties 
were  negotiated,  was  8450,000,000.  The  act  of  June  30, 
1864,  modified  and  repeated  this  limitation  as  follows : 

"*  Nor  shall  the  total  amount  of  United  States  notes 
issued  or  to  be  issued  ever  exceed  $400,000,000,  and  such 
additional  sum,  not  exceeding  $50,000,000,  as  may  be 
temporarily  required  for  the  redemption  of  the  temporary 
loan.' 

"This  limitation  upon  the  amount  of  greenbacks  was 
always  a  part  of  the  loan  laws,  and  why?  Because  the 
amount  of  these  notes  issued,  would  regulate  and  fix  the 
value  of  the  bonds  themselves.  In  all  the  loan  acts,  there 
fore,  the  amount  of  greenbacks  issued  from  time  to  time 
was  limited  by  law,  and  that  limitation  was  a  part  of  the 
contract  under  which  the  bonds  were  issued,  and  hence  any 
proposition  which  looks  to  an  increase  of  the  legal  tenders, 
with  a  view,  by  this  increase,  to  pay  off  the  five-twenties, 
would  be  a  plain  and  palpable  violation  of  a  public  en 
gagement.  Just  as  much  as  would  be  a  clipping  of  the 
coin,  or,  to  follow  the  example  of  the  middle  ages,  a  debase 
ment  of  the  coin.  Every  additional  greenback  issued  tends 
to  depreciate  the  value  of  the  security,  and,  therefore,  as 
the  law  itself  limits  the  amount,  it  must  be  complied  with 
whatever  is  the  consequence. 


164  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

"  I  take  it,  then,  that  no  proposition  will  ever  receive 
the  sanction  of  Congress  in  the  face  of  this  law,  pro 
viding  that  the  five-twenties  shall  be  redeemed  with  airy 
other  notes  than  those  in  existence  at  the  time  they  were  sold; 
that  any  proposition  of  that  kind  would  be  dishonorable  to 
the  country,  and  dishonorable  to  any  one  who  seriously 
proposed  and  advocated  it.  It  would  be  to  create  a  depre 
ciated  currency  in  order  to  evade  the  payment  of  an  honest 
debt." 

Here  is  not  a  syllable  of  pandering  to  those  who  would 
issue  dishonest  money.  Mr.  Sherman  believed  that  the 
five-twenties  were  payable  in  legal  tenders  already  issued, 
and  was  not  afraid  to  say  so,  and  it  was  right  for  the  hold 
ers  to  know  his  views.  Of  such  an  amount  of  greenbacks, 
Mr.  Sherman  was  not  afraid,  for  he  had  said  two  years  be 
fore,  they  were  as  good  as  gold,  which  was  realized  eleven 
years  later. 

N.  B.  — It  appears  from  the  Cincinnati  Gazette,  of  Octo 
ber  2,  1879,  that  opponents  are  still  quoting  Mr.  Sher 
man's  argument,  that  five-twenties  are  payable  in  legal 
tenders,  and  by  the  friendly  remarks  of  that  paper  it  would 
seem  that  his  position  is  but  partially  understood: 

1.  Mr  Sherman  never  voted  for  any  proposition  to  pay 
the  five-twenties  in  greenbacks,  but  always  the  reverse. 

2.  One  motive  in  expressing  his  views  was  to  give  the 
bond-holder  notice  that  if  the  matter  were  to  come  into 
court,  the  demand  for  coin  might  not  be  sustained. 

3.  Another  reason  was  to  keep  up,  as  much  as  possible, 
the  value  of  the  legal  tenders,  and,  if  practicable,  to  keep 
them  even  with  the  bonds. 

4.  It  is  quite  probable,  if  the  provision  to  convert  legal 
tenders  into  five -twenties  had  been  restored  after  the  war, 
he  might  have  so  voted,  but  its  repeal  had  so  distanced  the 


x.]  PREPARING!    FOR  RESUMPTION.  1G5 

value  of  the  bonds  and  the  legal  tenders,  that  he  did  not 
deem  it  just  to  insist  on  his  views. 

5.  Mr  Sherman  always  considered  the  legal  tenders  as 
due  and  payable  in  coin,  before  any  of  the  bonds  should  be 
paid.     The  five-twenty  bonds  were  a  loan  on  interest,  and 
the  Government  was  allowed  twenty  years  to  pay  them  in; 
but  the  greenbacks  were  a   forced  loan,  without   interest, 
payable  in  coin  on  demand.     He  therefore  considered  that 
in  law,  and  equity,  and  honor,  we  were  bound  to  pay  the 
first, 

6.  It  is  said  Mr.  Sherman  changed  his   opinion.     But 
when?     Just  as  soon  as  the   Government  issued  a  dollar 
in  legal  tenders  beyond  the  stipulated  $450,000,000.     He 
then  considered  the  covenant  violated,  and  all  payable  in 
coin;  and  this  is  just  what  lie  has  done.     He  never  favored 
paying  the  bonds  in  depreciated  paper. 


CHAPTER  XL 

REVENUES    AND    EXPENSES. 

AT  the  very  time  that  Mr.  Sherman  was  so  devoting  his 
energies  to  the  matter  of  reducing  expenses,  as  to  excite 
wonder  how  the  man  could  accomplish  so  much,  even  if  he 
had  hut  one  line  of  thought  to  pursue,  one  subject  to  study, 
one  end  to  accomplish,  he  was  dealing  heavy  blows  at  the 
other  side  of  our  mountain  of  debt.  While  he  was  try 
ing  to  reduce  the  people's  burden,  by  lightening  the  debt, 
he  was  laboring  to  accomplish  the  same  thing,  by  reducing 
the  taxes.  One  thing  in  him  is  peculiar,  but  very  sat 
isfactory.  In  the  time  of  President  Buchanan,  when 
the  nation  was  running  in  debt  at  the  rate  of  about 
816,000,000  a  year  for  current  expenses,  it  was  rarely 
stated.  But  Mr.  Sherman,  ever  since  he  was  at  the  head 
of  the  Committee  of  Ways  and  Moans,  has  not  failed 
again  and  again  to  tell  us  how  much  we  owe,  how  much 
we  have  paid,  and  how  much  must  be  paid  in  a  given 
time,  and  how  much  there  is  to  do  it  with. 

Hence,  on  the  23d  of  May,  1870,  while  the  herculean 
labors  of  the  funding  bill  were  on  his  mind  and  on  his 
heart,  we  find  him  reviewing  receipts  and  expenditures,  in 
order  to  a  reduction  of  taxes.  The  people  of  this  country 
scarcely  realize  how  much  they  are  indebted  to  Mr.  Sher 
man  for  accomplishing  so  much  in  the  way  of  reducing 

(166) 


.HAP.  XL]  REVENUES  AND  EXPENSES.  167 

taxes  previous  to  the  panic  of  1873.  But  his  own  words 
will  explain  it  better  than  the  compiler  can. 

The  Senate,  as  in  Committee  of  the  Whole,  having  under 
consideration  the  bill  making  appropriations  for  the  legis 
lative,  executive,  and  judicial  expenses  for  the  year  ending 
June  30,  1871,  Mr.  Sherman  said: 

"Mr.  President:  This  appropriation  bill  is  the  first  of 
a  series  that  will  bring  before  us  every  branch  of  the  ex 
penditures  of  the  National  Government.  It  may  be  well 
before  we  enter  into  their  details  to  take  a  general  view 
of  our  expenditures,  and  of  such  measures  of  taxation  as 
will  be  necessary  to  raise  the  vast  sums. about  to  be  appro 
priated.  Taxes  and  appropriations  are  inseparably  asso 
ciated.  They  are  the  painful  and  the  pleasing  sides  of 
financial  legislation.  If  to  appropriate  was  the  '  be-all  and 
end-all'  of  this  and  kindred  bills,  it  would  be  the  most 
gratifying  employment  in  the  world.  We  could  indulge 
in  the  luxuries  of  art  and  the  fancies  of  statesmanship ; 
we  could  erect  temples  for  custom-houses,  and  cover  the 
ocean  with  our  subsidized  steamers ;  we  could  increase  our 
salaries,  and  buy  all  the  islands  contiguous  to  our  conti 
nent.  But,  unfortunately,  we  can  only  appropriate  what 
we  first  collect  by  taxation ;  and  taxation  is  a  painful 
process  at  best  in  its  nature,  unequal,  and  generally  inflict 
ing  mere  injury  upon  the  individual  than  it  confers  bene 
fit  upon  the  people.  Every  appropriation  bill  is  a  tax  bill, 
and  every  item  added  is  a  draft  upon  the  earnings  and  la 
bor  of  our  citizens,  to  which  is  superadded  the  cost  of  col- 
N'l'tion.  If  the  money  is  borrowed,  then  interest  is  added, 
and  interest  is  as  consuming  to  the  resources  of  a  nation 
as  t>>  those  of  an  individual.  It  never  rests  nor  sleeps." 

Upon  the  above  passage  it  may  be  remarked,  that  as  to 
style  it  is  a  somewhat  higher  flight  than  the  Secretary 


108  HOX.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

usually  takes,  and  shows  that  if  the  energies  of  his  capa 
cious  intellect,  the  unerring  precision  of  his  retentive  mem 
ory,  the  ceaseless  activity  of  his  untiring  frame,  and  the 
relentless  power  of  his  unbending  will  had  been  directed 
to  other  branches,  as  they  have  been  to  finance,  he  might 
luive  achieved  equal  distinction.  But  then,  "where  has 
there  been,  in  all  the  ages  past,  one  that  could  have  de- 
I vised  schemes,  or  selected  from  those  suggested  by  others, 
such  as  were  feasible,*  and  so  instructed  and  controlled 
the  heterogeneous  minds  of  the  representatives  of  forty 
millions  of  people  as  to  carry  them  into  effect?  There 
have  been  many  eminent  statesmen,  men  of  science  and 
art,  orators  and  poets,  but  only  one  John  Sherman  the 
financier. 

Another  remark  may  be  made  on  this  paragraph.  It 
manifests  a  habit  of  looking  at  both  sides  of  a  question. 
There  must  be  money  enough  collected  to  pay  all  that  is 
due,  and  as  fast  as  due  it  must  be  expended  as  economi 
cally  and  wisely  as  possible,  and  collected  as  judiciously  as 
might  be,  so  as  to  make  the  burdens  as  light  as  might  be. 
Therefore  he  must  keep  both  eyes  open,  one  upon  the 
gathering  of  money  and  the  other  upon  paying  it  out. 
These  thoughts  also  show  the  humanity  and  tenderness  of 
the  man.  This  evidently  is  not  from  the  apprehension  of 
unpopularity  at  home,  and  of  losing  votes  thereby  if  the 
taxation  should  be  greater  than  would  be  needed,  but 
simply  a  regard  for  the  feelings  of  the  people.  He  knows 
that  the  pocket  nerve  is  a  very  sensitive  one,  and  he  dis 
likes  to  disturb  it.  Mr.  Sherman  is  no  actor,  does  not  say 
one  thing  and  mean  another,  but  says  and  acts  out  just 
what  he  feels,  as  he  did  when  he  threw  the  wafers  in  the 
Congressman's  face,  or  else  keeps  it  to  himself;  commonly 
the  latter.  It  is  not  strange  that  he  should  feel  the  sym- 


XL]  HE  VENUES  AND  EXPENSES.  169 

pathy  expressed  here,  but  it  is  not  usual  for  him  to  say 
what  he  feels. 

The  main  purpose  of  this  statement  is  to  let  the  people 
know  precisely  what  has  to  be  done,  that  as  far  as  practi 
cable  they  may  be  willing  to  do  it.  He  states  first  the  es 
timates  made  for  the  year  1871-72,  which  it  is  well  for  us 
to  keep  in  memory: 

Civil  service  and  miscellaneous  ,     8  60,000,000 

Pensions  and  Indians      .         .  36,000,000 

War  Department         ,         .  .         50,000,000 

Navy  Department   .         .         .  18,000,000 

Interest  on  public  debt         .  .        127,000,000 


Total  $291,000,000 

Add  to  this  the  one  per  cent,  required  for  the  sinking 
fund,  it  is  $315,000,000.  He  then  takes  a  careful  view, 
both  of  the  estimates  and  expenditures,  and  of  the  sources 
of  revenue,  and  says  that  the  revenue  for  the  next  year 
will  be  $393,000,000,  that  is  $78,000,000  above  the  needs 
of  the  Government,  and  also:  "What  shall  be  done  with 
this  surplus?  Is  it  better  to  repeal  and  diminish  the  taxes 
or  to  maintain  them  at  their  present  position,  with  a  view 
to  the  reduction  of  the  public  debt?" 

"I  see  no  object,"  he  says,  "in  accumulating  surplus 
funds,  because  they  are  always  a  temptation  to  extravagant 
expenditures. 

"A  surplus  revenue  could  only  be  used  for  a  more  rapid 
reduction  of  the  public  debt.  It  might  strengthen  the 
power  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  reduce  the  in 
terest  of  the  debt,  These  are  objects  of  high  public  im 
portance,  but,  in  my  opinion,  it  is  now  more  important  to 
relieve  our  people  from  burdensome  taxation.  The  money 


15 


170  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

is  more  valuable  to  the  tax-payers,  in  the  multiplied 
business  of  a  new  and  vast  country  like  ours,  than  it  is  to 
the  National  Government.  The  large  surplus  now  on  hand, 
together  with  the  fixed  provision  for  the  reduction  of  the 
debt,  contained  in  the  funding  bill,  will  enable  us  to  re 
duce  the  rate  of  interest,  and  gradually  pay  the  principal, 
without  continuing  the  drain  of  taxation  upon  our  people. 
We  point  with  pride  to  the  vast  sums  they  have  freely  and 
voluntarily  paid,  levied  by  themselves  during  and  since 
the  war.  They  have  borne  not  only  with  patience,  but  with 
patriotic  alacrity,  a  burden  of  taxation  without  an  ex 
ample  in  history." 

Then  Mr.  Sherman  recounts  the  reductions  that  have 
been  made  in  taxes  since  the  close  of  the  war,  viz: 

In  1866       ....  $  65,000,000 

In  1867    ....  40,000,000 

In  1868       ....  68,000,000 

And  now  proposes  additional  78,000,000 

Total        ....     $251,000,000 

Mr.  Sherman's  idea  about  the  levy  of  the  tax  is,  that  it 
must  come  mainly  from  import  duties,  and  from  internal 
revenue,  and  he  would  abolish  all  but  the  tax  on  spirits, 
tobacco,  fermented  liquors,  larger  stamps,  and  a  small  in 
come  tax.  The  main  part  of  his  argument,  at  this  time, 
was  to  retain  the  income  tax,  as  being  the  only  tax  the 
United  States  will  now  levy  upon  property,  the  rest  being 
on  consumption. 

An  interesting  discussion  took  place  in  the  Senate  Janu 
ary  4,  1871,  in  which  Mr.  Sherman  participated,  that  has 
since  become  of  considerable  interest  in  the  matter  of  civil 
service  reform.  Senator  Trumbull  offered  a  motion,  which 


XL]  REVENUES  AND  EXPENSES.  171 

was  referred  to  the  Judiciary  Committee,  and  an  act,  re 
ported  as  follows : 

That  hereafter  it  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  member  of 
either  House  of  Congress,  or  Delegate  from  a  Territory, 
verbally  or  in  writing,  to  solicit,  recommend  or  advise  the 
President  of  the  United  8tates,  or  any  head  of  a  Depart 
ment,  or  of  any  bureau  thereof,  to  appoint  any  person  to 
office  or  employment,  etc. 

Mr.  Sherman  said:  "I  have  thought  a  good  deal  of  this 
bill  since  it  was  under  discussion  at  the  last  session  of  Con 
gress.  At  first  my  impressions  were  against  it,  simply  on 
the  ground  that  it  changed  the  established  customs  of  the 
country,  since  the  foundation  of  the  Government;  but  the 
more  I  have  reflected  upon  it,  the  more  I  see  that  it  is 
necessary,  not  only  to  relieve  ourselves,  but  to  relieve  the 
President  from  the  embarrassment  of  his  position. 

"I  have  regarded  this  measure  for  the  last  year,  as  being 
not  a  complete  civil  service  reform  in  itself,  but  as  being 
an  entering  wedge,  indispensably  necessary  to  bring  about 
civil  service  reform." 

Mr.  Morton  opposed  it  as  being  unconstitutional.  Mr. 
Conkling  also  opposed  it.  The  result  of  this  discussion 
was,  the  introduction,  by  Senator  Schurz,  of  a  bill  for  civil 
service  reform.  This  bill,  if  after  it  had  passed  it  could  have 
been  enforced,  would  have  done  a  vast  deal  toward  re 
ducing  the  public  burdens.  If  a  man  once  appointed  to 
office  could  hold  it  during  good  behavior,  he  could  afford 
to  do  it  for  one-half  the  pay  at  most,  that  is  now  given, 
and  would  be  less  likely  to  be  dishonest.  Men  on  small 
incomes  are  less  likely  to  commit  fraud  than  on  large. 
There  would  also  be  much  less  time  spent  in  office-seeking, 
less  corruption  at  elections,  and  office-holding  would  be 
much  more  honorable  than  now.  A  thorough-going  civil 


172  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

service  reform  would  save  to  the  people  of  this  country 
vast  amounts  of  money,  and  a  great  many  other  things. 
Frequent  changes  render  high  salaries  necessary,  and  high 
salaries  cause  a  universal  scramble  for  office.  Let  reform 
come  speedily. 

On  January  9,  1871,  the  subject  of  revising  the  laws  re 
lating  to  the  mints,  assay  offices,  and  coinage  of  the  United 
States,  being  before  the  Senate  as  in  committee  of  the 
whole,  on  amendment  of  the  Committee  on  Finance,  it  was 
proposed  to  charge  three-tenths  of  one  per  cent,  for  coin 
age.  This  was  two-tenths  lower  than  Mr.  Sherman  pre 
ferred,  but  without  this  he  would  not  vote  for  the  bill.  He 
was  unwilling  to  vote  for  free  coinage  while  the  people 
would  have  the  same  money  to  pay  in  other  forms  of  taxa 
tion.  Mr.  Sherman  comes  right  to  the  point  and  says: 
"  We  do  not  carry  people's  letters  for  nothing,  although 
that  would  be  a  convenience,  and  would  increase  the  num 
ber  of  letters  to  be  carried.  We  do  not  coin  silver  for 
nothing;  on  the  contrary,  we  get  a  profit  of  about  two  per 
cent,  (now  fifteen  per  cent.),  and  on  the  nickel  coinage  we 
get  a  much  larger  profit.  We  do  not  propose  to  do  any 
thing  for  private  citizens  unless  we  are  reimbursed  for  the 
expenses,  and  there  is  no  justice,  no  propriety  in  taxing  the 
farmers  of  the  United  States,  or  the  merchants  of  the 
United  States,  or  the  people  of  the  United  States  generally, 
for  this  expense  of  one  hundred  or  one  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  dollars  for  maintaining  our  mints,  merely  for  the 
purpose  of  giving  a  fancied  benefit  to  the  diggers  of  gold 
in  California."  He  thought  the  result  of  the  abolition  of 
this  charge  would  be  to  force  all  the  gold  of  California  into 
the  mint  to  be  coined,  without  adding  a  particle  to  its  value 
for  exportation  or  use.  In  this,  as  in  every  speech  and 
vote,  Mr.  Sherman  is  for  doing  justice  to  the  individual, 


XL]  REVENUES  AND  EXPENSES.  173 

and  saving  money  to  the  Treasury;  all  to  help  on  toward 
resumption. 

INCOME   TAX. 

Iii  the  Senate,  January  25,  1871,  a  bill  was  considered 
to  repeal  the  income  tax,  which  had  been  continued  by  the 
act  of  July  14,  1870.  This  aroused,  again,  all  Mr.  Sher 
man's  energy.  Here  his  favorite  project  of  early  resump 
tion,  light  taxes,  and  reduction  of  the  debt  was  seriously 
threatened.  This  was  a  tax  on  all  incomes  over  82,000,  of 
two  and  a  half  per  cent.  To  show  that  he  was  no  favorer 
of  aristocracy,  but  thoroughly  republican,  note  the  follow 
ing  remark  upon  this  bill  : 

"  The  proposed  repeal  of  the  income  tax  necessarily  in 
volves  the  consideration  of  our  whole  financial  system,  and 
can  not  be  hurried  through  upon  the  interested  clamor  of 
the  comparatively  few  persons  affected  by  it.  Nothing  is 
more  pleasing  than  to  repeal  taxes,  and  it  would  be  easy  to 
show  that  the  repeal  of  any  tax  now  levied  would  give  re 
lief.  The  income  tax  is  iiow  levied  only  upon  those  whose 
goocl  fortune  it  is  to  enjoy  large  property,  or  whose  salaries 
or  profits  lift  them  far  above  the  pressing  wants  that  rest 
upon  the  great  mass  of  our  people.  The  possessiou  of  large 
property,  and  the  ability  to  earn  large  incomes,  give  to 
those  enjoying  this  income  great  influence  over  public  opin 
ion.  They  speak  through  the  daily  press,  from  high  of 
ficial  stations,  from  great  corporations,  from  cities  where 
wealth  accumulates,  and  with  the  advantage  of  social,  per 
sonal,  and  delegated  influence.  I  know  the  power  of  this 
influence." 

Mr.  Sherman  was  in  favor  of  continuing  this  tax,  be 
cause  it  is  a  tax,  and  the  only  one,  levied  on  property.  It 
bears  upon  those  best  able  to  sustain  it,  and  it  is  a  method 


174  HOX.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

of  reaching  those  whose  income  arises  from  United  States 
bonds.  He  proposes  to  demonstrate  these  propositions : 

1.  It  is   unwise    to   disturb   the   measures   of  the    last 
session. 

2.  Our  revenues  and  expenses  will  not  justify  it. 

1  3.  It  will  require  a  revision  of  our  whole  system  of 
finance. 

4.  4'  The  repeal  of  this  tax  will  affect  injuriously  the 
higher  objects,  namely,  the  funding  of  the  public  debt  and 
the  resumption  of  specie  payments." 

Any  thing  that  interfered  with  this  last  grand  aim  of 
the  Chairman  of  the  Finance  Committee,  awakened  every 
nerve  in  his  body,  and  all  the  energies  of  his  soul.  Not 
to  sink  the  public  debt,  as  the  law  required,  "would  de 
preciate  national  credit,  would  interfere  with  the  sale  of 
bonds  at  a  lower  interest,  and  prevent  or  take  away  the 
ability  to  procure  gold  with  which  to  resume.  To  take 
off  this  tax  will  make  it  necessary  to  levy  it  somewhere 
else,  which  there  is  not  time  to  do  now,  without  injustice 
somewhere."  It  was  asserted  that  there  was  gold  enough 
in  the  Treasury,  more  than  was  needed,  to  supply  this  de 
ficiency.  Mr.  Sherman  thought  there  was  little  enough  for 
the  purposes  he  had  in  view.  A  few  years  afterwards,  a 
member  of  Congress  would  not  believe  he  had  so  much  till 
he  went  and  examined.  So  Mr.  Sherman  was  compelled 
to  argue  one  way  at  one  time,  and  another  way  at  another 
time,  according  to  facts  and  circumstances. 

March  15,  1872,  a  bill  came  from  the  House  of  Repre 
sentatives  to  the  Senate  to  repeal  the  duty  on  salt.  This 
was  largely  mixed  up  with  the  political  agitation  that  pre 
ceded  the  Presidential  election  that  year.  Mr.  Sherman 
regretted  that  a  purely  business  matter  should  have  be 
come  thus  mixed,  and  proceeded  to  give  some  judicious 


XL]  REVENUES  AND  EXPENSES.  175 

rules  and  wise  maxims  for  the  imposition  and  non-imposi 
tion  of  duties.  Such  were  the  increasing  revenues  of  the 
nation,  the  improvement  of  credit,  and  the  diminution  of 
interest  on  the  debt  by  refunding,  that  a  reduction  of  taxes 
was  admissible.  The  question  whether  bonds  are  payable 
in  gold  or  not,  is  superseded  by  the  fact  that  they  are 
equal  to  gold.  The  legitimate  wants  of  a  growing  nation,1 
like  ours,  are  constantly  increasing,  but  then  the  revenues 
are  increasing,  and  that,  too,  without  an  increase  of  duty. 

"  The  effect  of  repealing  and  reducing  taxes  is  often 
overestimated,  lower  duty  often  bringing  increased  rev 
enue.  From  1868  to  1871  the  receipts  from  customs  in 
creased  $42,000,000,  being  an  annual  increase  of  nearly 
$14,000,000,  while  custom  duties  were  repealed  which 
yielded  $20,000,000  per  annum." 

Here,  in  this  speech,  is  the  first  distant  rumbling  of  the 
financial  storm  that  was  to  burst  upon  the  nation  the  fol 
lowing  year.  Mr.  Sherman  said: 

"If  the  rate  of  duties  received  during  the  eight  months 
of  the  current  fiscal  year  shall  continue  for  the  next  four 
months,  which  months  are  equally  favorable  for  the  im 
portation  of  goods,  the  actual  receipts  for  the  current  year 
will  not  be  less  than  two  hundred  and  twenty  odd  million 
dollars ;  and,  making  the  ordinary  allowance  for  an  in 
crease,  the  same  duties  will,  during  the  next  year,  UNLESS 
WE  HAVE  A  FINANCIAL  REVULSION,  produce  not  less  than 
$226,000,000,  instead  of  $212,000,000."  But  that  revul 
sion  came. 

Mr.  Sherman  states  an  interesting  and  important  fact  in 
the  following  words : 

"  Our  protective  system  has  drawn  to  our  country  a  vast 
array  of  industrious  laborers.  Even  the  high  taxes  we 
have  been  compelled  to  impose  on  domestic  industry  have 


176  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

not  diminished  our  production,  for  they  are  accompanied 
by  increased  taxes  on  foreign  products.  We  may  theorize 
as  we  will,  but  the  actual  condition  of  the  country  is  the 
best  evidence  that  the  industrial  policy,  steadily  main 
tained  by  us  during  the  war  and  since  the  war,  has 
been  consistent  with  the  most  rapid  progress,  has  en 
abled  us  to  meet  unexampled  difficulties,  and  yet  has  in 
creased  our  imports,  our  exports,  and  our  revenue. 

"The  imports  in  1869  were  §414,000,000:  in  1870, 
$452,000,000;  and  in  1871,  $518,000,000.  Our  exports 
the  same  years  were  $413,000,000,  8499,000,000,  and 
$562,000,000.  These  figures  show  a  steady  increase  in  our 
foreign  commerce,  with  a  growing  balance  of  trade  in  our 
favor. 

"  If,  then,  the  wisdom  of  our  protective  policy  is  to  be 
tested  by  experience,  I  insist  that  it  is  proved  to  have  been 
a  wise  policy,  in  the  actual  condition  of  our  country." 

Here  follows  an  emphatic  element  in  Mr.  Sherman's 
creed  about  protection  : 

"  Our  taxes  must  be  reduced  to  correspond  with  the  re 
duced  wants  of  the  public  service.  .  But  every  industry 
that  has  been  called  into  existence  by  our  policy,  should 
be  considered  in  any  reduction  of  duties.  I  hope,  then," 
says  Mr.  Sherman,  "  in  making  the  reduction  of  our  rev 
enue,  we  will  all  agree  that  it  shall  be  so  done  as  to  give 
the  greatest  measure  of  relief^  and  do  the  least  possible  in 
jury  to  any  industry  fostered  by  our  laws." 

Mr.  Sherman  gives  another  thrust  at  the  opponents  of 
the  income  tax.  "The  public  mind,"  he  says,  "is  not  yet 
prepared  to  apply  the  only  key  to  a  genuine  revenue  re 
form.  A  few  years  of  further  experience  will  convince  the 
body  of  our  people  that  a  system  of  national  taxes,  which 
rests  the  whole  burden  of  taxation  on  consumption,  and 


xi.  REVENUES  AND  EXPENSES.  177 

not  one  cent  on  property  or  income,  is  intrinsically  unjust. 
While  the  expenses  of  the  National  Government  are  largely 
caused  by  the  protection  of  property,  it  is  but  right  to  re 
quire  property  to  contribute  to  their  payment.  It  will  not 
do  to  say  that  each  person  consumes  in  proportion  to  his 
means.  This  is  not  true." 

Mr.  Sherman's  tariff  and  revenue  principles  appear  at 
this  time  to  have  been  expressed  about  as  follows : 

1.  Dispense  with  internal  revenue,  except  from  whisky, 
tobacco,  and  beer. 

2.  Duties  on  imports  only  for  needed  revenue. 

3.  To  be  levied  where  they  will  do  the  most  good  and 
the  least  harm. 

4.  To  be  levied  on  articles  we  can  produce,  not  on  others, 
unless  it  be  to  exclude  them. 

These  are  substantially  the  same  as  before  stated — the 
same  that  were  accepted  by  the  AVhigs  in  1848— and  they 
certainly  do  honor  to  Mr.  Sherman,  as  to  head  and  heart. 

"A  revenue  tariff  is  inconsistent  with  the  extreme  theo 
ries  of  both  the  free-trade  and  protection  schools." 

"  The  maxims  of  one  nation  in  fixing  the  rates  of  duty 
are  totally  inapplicable  to  another."  The  Whig  doctrine 
of  1848,  precisely. 

"  It  is  settled  that  our  national  revenue  must,  in  the 
future,  as  in  the  past,  be  mainly  collected  by  duties  on 
imported  goods,  and  as  the  war  has  enormously  increased 
our  wants,  we  may  as  well  dismiss  to  future  generations 
the  extreme  ideas  of  free  trade  and  protection,  which  are 
alike  inconsistent  with  a  revenue  tariff." 

The  next  snag  which  Mr.  Sherman  encountered  in  his 
efforts  for  resumption,  was  the  claims  for  French  spolia 
tion,  prior  to  1800,  which  was  speedily  removed,  in  the 
way  previously  noticed,  in  December,  1872. 


178  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP.  xi. 

RE- ISSUE  OF  NOTES. 

On  January  14,  1873,  appeared  in  Congress,  evidence  of 
another  and  more  alarming  premonition  of  the  terrible 
panic  of  September,  1873.  This  intimation  appeared  in 
the  persistent  pressure  upon  the  Government  for  more 
greenbacks.  Expansion  and  inflation  had  reached  their 
limit,  and  the  bubble  must  burst  unless  the  Government 
should  forfeit  its  covenant  with  the  bond-holders,  and  issue 
more  legal  tenders.  Evidently,  a  strong  influence  had  been 
brought  to  bear  upon  the  Senate,  and  at  the  above  date, 
Mr.  Sherman,  from  the  Committee  on  Finance,  made  the 
following  report.  That  committee,  in  obedience  to  the 
resolution  of  the  Senate,  made  the  inquiry  as  to  the  le 
gality  of  issuing  legal  tenders  in  place  of  the  forty-four 
million  dollars  of  notes  retired  and  cancelled  under  the 
law  of  April  12,  1866.  The  committee  reported  the  fol 
lowing  resolution : 

"Resolved,  That  in  the  opinion  of  the  Senate,  the  Secre 
tary  of  the  Treasury  has  not  the  power,  under  the  existing 
law,  to  issue  notes  for  any  portion  of  the  forty-four  millions 
of  the  United  States  notes,  retired  and  cancelled." 

So  this  snag  appeared  to  be  removed  for  the  present. 
But  the  struggle  is  far  from  being  ended  yet.  An  effort 
was  made  to  throw  upon  the  Government  the  responsi 
bility  and  the  cost  of  re-coining  abraded  gold  coins,  and 
keeping  them  up  to  the  standard.  To  this,  Mr.  Sherman 
objected  as  being  an  unprecedented  burden  on  the  treas 
ury.  He  says:  "Neither  the  Government  of  the  United 
States,  nor  any  other  nation  in  the  world  undertakes  to 
make  coins  good  except  for  their  intrinsic  value."  On  the 
coinage  charge  for  gold,  he  says:  "It  has  not  been,  and 
ought  not  to  be,  repealed." 


CHAPTEK  XII. 

THE  PANIC. 

ON  the  16th  of  January,  1873,  an  act  was  proposed  by 
the  Committee  on  Finance,  and  earnestly  advocated  by 
Mr.  Sherman,  supplemental  to  the  acts  of  January,  1864, 
to  secure  an  elastic  currency,  to  appreciate  the  national 
obligations,  and  to  reach  specie  payments.  The  commit 
tee  propose  free  banking,  and  qualified  specie  payments, 
after  the  first  of  January  next.  That  would  be  in  1874. 

He  first  presented  the  importance  of  specie  payments  to 
the  business  of  the  country.  Then  the  obligations  we  are 
under  to  pay  at  the  earliest  practical  period.  Every  note 
has  on  its  face  the  agreement  to  pay.  The  Supreme  Court 
so  decides.  Not  only  so  ;•  it  is  policy  to  pay.  The  honor 
of  the  country  demands  it.  The  chief  requisite  is,  that 
the  public  should  have  confidence  in  our  ability  to  main 
tain  resumption,  and  the  coin  will  rarely  be  required. 
This  confidence,  he  thought,  could  be  produced  by  one  of 
three  expedients: 

1st,  A  large  reserve  of  coin ;  2d.  The  authority  to  sell 
bonds  for  coin ;  and,  3d.  Alternative  redemption  in  either 
coin  or  bonds. 

He  then  mentions  several  schemes,  which  he  deems  prac 
ticable,  to  bring  it  about:  1st.  To  receive  legal  tenders  for 
bonds;  2d.  For  duties;  3d.  Exchange  them  for  compound- 

(179) 


180  HON.  JOHX  8HERMAX.  [CHAP. 

interest  notes;  4th.  Fix  a  day  for  resumption;  5th.  A 
graduated  scale  of  resumption. 

On  the  17th  of  January,  1874,  just  one  year  later,  the 
same  subject  was  before  the  Senate  for  consideration.  But 
what  a  change  had  one  year  brought  about!  A  financial 
tornado  had  swept  through  the  land,  from  the  lakes  to  the 
gulf,  and  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific.  Business  of 
every  kind  became  stagnant;  demand  for  manufactures 
ceased;  merchants  failed;  banks  broke,  and  all  commercial 
credit  seemed  to  be  at  an  end.  The  diminution  of  business 
made  it  necessary  to  reduce  wages.  That  caused  strikes 
among  workmen,  and  these  led  finally  to  a  wide-extended 
riot.  It  was  soon  quelled,  however,  and  after  a  long  de 
pression,  better  times  began  to  dawn.  Six  years  and  four 
months  it  may  properly  be  said  to  have  lasted,  and  ended, 
in  fact,  with  the  resumption  of  specie  payments  in  1879. 
Before  that  time,  however,  Mr.  Sherman  has  the  battle  to 
fight  over  again.  The  first  of  January,  1874,  w'as  the  time 
Mr.  Sherman  had  fixed  in  his  own  mind  for  resumption, 
and  but  for  the  panic,  it  would  probably  have  been  reached 
then.  But  that  revulsion  deferred  it  five  years  longer. 
Business  lagged;  revenue— both  internal  revenue  and  im 
port  duties— fell  off;  the  844,000,000  retired  legal  tenders 
were  re-issued,  in  part,  in  violation  of  law,  which  destroyed 
confidence  in  the  Government  more  than  it  aided  the  peo 
ple,  and  for  years  a  pall  of  gloom  hung  over  the  future. 

Still  our  financier  was  game.  Difficulties  in  his  way 
wrere  not  new.  He  had  learned  to  bear  the  yoke  even  in 
childhood,  and  here  at  this  date  rises  in  the  Senate  to 
speak  on  "the  bill  to  provide  free  banking,  to  secure  an 
elastic  currency,  to  appreciate  national  obligations,  and 
to  reach  specie  payments,  without  commercial  embarrass 
ment." 


xii.]  THE  PANIC.  181 

He  begins  with  the  announcement  of  the  great  axioms 
of  political  economy,  and  it  is  repeated  here  that  it  may  be 
impressed  upon  the  memories  of  all  who  read  this  sketch. 
In  truth,  the  leading  purpose  of  this  book  is,  in  as  small  a 
compass  as  possible,  to  impress  upon  the  minds  of  our 
youth  the  lessons  of  wisdom  which  our  financier  is  so  com 
petent  to  teach.  This  is  one  reason  for  putting  down  so 
much  of  it  in  his  own  words, 

"  The  most  obvious  of  these  axioms,"  he  says,  "  and  one 
which  lies  at  the  foundation  of  the  argument  I  wish  to  make 
to-day,  is  that  a  specie  standard  is  the  best,  and  only  true 
standard  of  all  values,  recognized  as  such  by  all  civilized 
nations  of  our  generation,  and  established  as  such  by  the 
experience  of  all  commercial  nations  that  have  existed 
from  the  earliest  periods  of  recorded  time. 

"It  is  idle  for  us  to  try  to  discuss,  with  intelligence,  the 
currency  question,  until  we  are  impressed  with  the  truth, 
the  universality,  and  the  immutability  of  this  axiom. 
Every  man  must  have  his  trade,  and  needs  some  things 
he  can  not  make,  and  must  have  something  convenient  to 
exchange  for  it.  Paper,  in  various  forms,  may  be  used, 
but  takes  its  value  from  being  convertible  into  gold  and 
silver,  as  being  of  intrinsic  value,  durable,  divisible,  easily 
transported,  of  universal  use,  and  of  the  same  qualities 
wherever  found. 

"Formerly  specie  was  the  chief  medium  of  exchange, 
but  now,  from  the  use  of  checks,  drafts,  and  notes,  it  forms 
a  .-mall  part  of  it;  in  this  country  about  five  per  cent.,  in 
England  two  percent.,  but  it  always  measures  the  value 
of  these  expedients  for  exchange.  Credit  money  often 
becomes  worthless  when  it  is  not  backed  by  specie,  or 
other  property  that  will  bring  it;  but  where  a  Govern- 


182  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP, 

ment  undertakes  to  supply  paper  money,  it  is  bound  to 
make  it  good." 

The  argument  put  forth  in  the  Senate,  January  16,  1874, 
is  certainly  the  most  powerful  of  any  he  ever  made,  up  to 
that  time,  Powerful  because  it  was  an  overwhelming  ap 
peal  to  the  most  authoritative  element  in  man's  constitu 
tion — namely,  to  the  conscience— and  the  solemn  obliga 
tions  to  observe  the  national  compact  to  redeem  the  green 
backs  in  gold: 

"Mr.  President,"  he  says,  "thus  far  my  remarks  are 
founded  upon  the  experience  of  ages,  applicable  to  all 
countries,  and  to  all  commercial  nations  of  our  time.  I 
present  them  now  as  axioms  of  universal  recognition.  And 
yet  I  have  heard  these  axioms  denounced  in  this  Senate  as 
'platitudes/  useless  for  this  discussion  in  the  Senate  of  the 
United  States.  The  wisdom  of  ages,  the  experience  of 
three  thousand  years,  the  writings  of  political  economists, 
are  whistled  down  the  wind,-— as  if  we  in  this  Senate  were 
wiser  than  all  who  have  reasoned,  and  thought,  and  legis 
lated  upon  financial  problems,— as  if  all  this  accumulated 
wisdom  consisted  of  'platitudes'  unworthy  to  influence  an 
American  Senate  in  the  consideration  of  the  affairs  of  our 
day  and  generation." 

This  paragraph  marks  out  the  foe,  or  rather  the  myriads 
of  foes,  that  he  had  to  deal  with.  But  that  man  standing 
there  on  the  floor  of  the  Senate,  backed  by  the  wisdom  of 
ages,  by  the  eternal  laws  of  right  and  wrong,  the  obliga 
tion  of  solemn  national  compacts,  and  the  momentous 
responsibility  of  nations  to  do  what  they  promised  to  do, 
wher  they  have  the  power,  is  stronger  than  they  all.  The 
result  has  been  proved  that  he  was,  just  as  the  result 
showed  that  David  was  more  than  a  match  for  Goliath. 

Mr.  Sherman  states  his  purpose  to  be  "  to  prove  that  we 


THE  PANIC.  183 

are  bound  by  public  faith,  and  by  good  policy,  to  bring  our 
currency  to  the  gold  standard ;  that  such  a  result  was  pro 
vided  for  by  the  financial  policy  when  the  currency  was 
authorized;  that  a  departure  from  this  policy  was  made 
after  the  war  was  over,  and  after  the  necessity  for  a  de 
preciated  currency  ceased;  and  that  we  have  only  to 
restore  the  old  feeling  to  bring  us  safely,  surely,  and  easily 
to  a  specie  standard." 

He  appeals  first  to  the  pledge  of  the  United  States,  in 
March,  1869,  in  these  words: 

"And  the  United  States  also  solemnly  pledges  its  public 
faith  to  provide,  at  the  earliest  practicable  period,  for  the 
redemption  of  the  United  States  notes  in  coin." 

He  refers  to  the  circumstances  under  which  this  pledge 
was  made.  The  whole  subject,  the  condition  of  the  cur 
rency,  the  obligation  of  our  bond,  the  nature  of  our  prom 
ises,  had  been  discussed  before  the  people,  and  the  result 
was  that  those  who  believed  that  the  bonds  and  notes 
should  be  paid  in  coin,  prevailed,  and  General  Grant  was 
elected.  On  the  eastern  portico  of  the  capitol,  on  the  4th 
of  March,  1869,  he  said:  "To  protect  the  national  honor, 
every  dollar  of  Government  indebtedness  should  be  paid  in 
gold,  unless  otherwise  expressly  stipulated  in  the  contract." 

Congress  then  passed  the  act  to  strengthen  the  public 
credit,  making  the  above  pledge.  "The  day  that  pledge 
was  made  United  States  notes  were  worth  75f  cents  in 
New  York — i.  e.,  the  premium  on  gold  was  32  per  cent. 
In  one  year  they  were  within  12  per  cent,  of  par  with  gold. 
In  one  year  our  paper  improved  from  75  to  89  cents  in 
value.  Such  was  the  effect  of  a  promise. 

"But  how  have  we  redeemed  this  promise?  It  was 
made  in  obedience  to  the  public  voice,  but  how  has  it  been 
kept?  Congress  has  done,"  says  Mr.  Sherman,  "no  single 


Isi  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

act  the  tendency  of  which  has  been  to  advance."  Con 
gress  made  this  promise  five  years  ago.  It  was  believed. 
Since  that  four  years  elapsed  the  value  of  greenbacks  is  the 
same  as  one  year  after,  and  "no  act  of  yours  has  tended  to 
advance  the  value  of  the  greenback,  but  the  contrary." 

Mr.  Sherman's  complaint  \vas  that  we  had  paid  $400,- 
000,000  of  the  public  debt  that  was  not  due,  and  had  not 
paid  a  single  dollar  of  the  debt  that  was  due  March,  1869; 
and  it  cost  $40,000,000  to  pay  that  in  premiums,  while  the 
debts  due  had  increased  faster  than  the  population. 

"  I  am  not  here,"  he  says,  "  to  find  fault  with  individuals, 
but  I  do  say  that  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  has 
not  done  what  it  ought  to  redeem  its  pledge.  Why,  sir,  at 
this  very  moment  we  are  living  in  violation  of  this  pledge." 
On  June  30,  1869,  there  were  $356,000,000  of  greenbacks 
— all  the  law  allowed.  On  the  first  of  this  month  $378,- 
489,339,  over  $22,000,000  unlawful  currency,  and  now,  the 
16th,  has  increased  at  the  rate  of  $400,000  a  day.  The 
fractional  currency  had  increased  over  twenty-one  millions, 
national  bank  circulation  had  increased  thirty-nine  millions, 
in  all  an  increase  of  legal  tenders  of  nearly  eighty-three 
millions,  and  still  going  on  by  the  issue  of  the  forty-four 
millions,  and  yet,  he  says,  "  there  is  a  cry  for  more,  more. 
Congress  has  failed  to  keep  in  view  what  it  promised,  viz., 
to  redeem  in  coin.  It  has  violated  its  pledge." 

Mr.  Morton  had  urged  that  the  increase  of  circulation 
had  been  attended  with  great  improvement.  Mr.  Sher 
man  said,  "If  we  can  not  pay  in  times  of  prosperity,  and 
do  as  we  promised,  can  we  in  times  of  adversity?"  and 
argued  that  "at  anytime  steps  could  have  been  taken 
toward  doing  the  thing  promised,  and  now,  under  a  panic, 
when  debts  are  greatly  diminished,  is  a  favorable  time  for 
entering  by  decisive  measures  upon  the  policy  of  resump- 


xn.]  THE  PANIC.  185 

tion."  Mr.  Sherman  employs  irony  sometimes,  as  follows: 
"I  suppose,  according  to  the  Senator's  ideas,  we  are  to 
issue  more  paper  money,  make  more  good  times,  start  the 
ball  of  inflation,  with  a  view  that  some  time,  may  be,  in 
the  dim  future,  we  will  undertake  to  perform  our  prom 
ise. 

"  But  let  us  come  to  the  specific  question  of  the  time  for 
resumption.  Shall  the  redemption  of  this  pledge  be  post 
poned  until  the  public  debt  is  paid?  Why,  sir,  one-tenth 
of  the  money  we  have  used  to  pay  the  public  debt  not  due, 
would  have  brought  us  to  the  specie  standard."  Mr.  Sher 
man  then  thought  it  not  necessary  to  reduce  the  circulation 
of  greenbacks  below  three  hundred  millions,  and  gave  it 
as  the  opinion  of  many  business  men,  that  if  assured  that 
the  Government  would  be  able  to  pay  and  continue  to  pay 
gold,  very  little  would  be  called  for,  and  says  that  $56,- 
000,000  that  we  have  paid  of  the  debt  not  due,  would  have 
brought  the  remaining  greenbacks  up  to  par  in  gold. 

He  proceeds  to  show  the  futility  of  waiting  till  we  have 
accumulated  gold  enough  to  redeem  the  notes ;  of  waiting 
for  the  balance  of  trade,  and  makes  this  eloquent  appeal, 
which  is  a  solemn  and  serious  lesson  to  any  nation  or  indi 
vidual  that  owes  a  debt  past  due,  or  has  made  a  promise 
and  not  fulfilled  it: 

"Sir,  there  is  no  time  unfit  to  fulfill  a  sacred  obligation, 
and  there  has  been  no  day  since  this  obligation  was  declared 
by  Congress,  when  we  should  not  have  directed  our  atten 
tion  toward  redeeming  it.  You  have  buried  your  talent, 
and  are  an  unfaithful  steward.  I  ask  the  honorable  Sen 
ator  from  Indiana  what  single  act  of  Congress  since  this 
pledge  was  made  has  even  tended  toward  specie  payments? 
Not  one."  Mr.  Sherman  urges  the  importance  of  fixing 
the  time,  compliments  the  American  people  upon  their 


186  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

fidelity  to  the  bond-holder,  and  counsels  them  to  be  as 
faithful  to  the  note-holder. 

After  thus  showing  that  covenant  obligations  required 
the  Government  to  hasten  resumption  with  all  possible 
speed,  and  that  it  had  shamefully  and  faithlessly  violated 
its  pledge,  he  proceeds  to  the  argument,  of  less  force  with 
some,  but  greater  with  others,  that  it  is  policy  to  do  so,  and 
was  a  policy  upon  which  they  were  adopted.  The  very 
foundation  of  the  greenback  was  coin.  It  was  by  law 
equal  to  coin  for  all  purposes,  except  to  pay  import  duties 
and  interest  on  bonds.  These  two  were  ihe  only  exceptions 
as  to  the  use  of  the  greenback.  At  first  they  were  even 
convertible  into  bonds,  but  under  the  terrible  pressure  of 
war,  this  right  was  taken  away.  This  Mr.  Sherman  re 
gards  as  a  mistake  in  which  he  shares  the  responsibility, 
but  to  this  imputes  the  difficulty  of  returning  to  specie 
payments. 

He  then  proceeds  to  note  the  objections : 

"  1.  It  will  be  burdensome  to  debtors — an  objection  well 
taken,  but,  then,  debts  are  less  than  they  were. 

"2.  We  will  have  to  pay  interest  on  a  portion  of  the 
debt  drawing  no  interest.  True,  but  if  we  owe  it,  we 
ought  to  pay  interest  on  it. 

"3.  The  United  States  notes  will  be  withdrawn,  and 
give  place  to  national  bank  currency.  That  would  be  in 
finitely  better  than  the  old  State  bank  system. 

"4.  It  will  contract  the  currency."  Mr.  Sherman  did 
not  think  it  would  contract,  but  asks  with  great  force,  "  Is 
it  contraction  to  pay  a  note  when  it  is  due?" 

"When  they"  (the  people)  "find  out  that  contraction 
means  good  money,  convertible  money,  greenbacks  con 
vertible  into  gold,  they  will  sound  hallelujahs  in  favor  of 
that  kind  of  money." 


xn.]  THE  PANIC.  187 

Mr.  Sherman  closed  this  speech  thus  :  "  Sir,  I  have  been 
many  years  here  and  in  the  other  house,  through  long  and 
troublesome  controversies,  during  peace  and  war,  and  I, 
for  one,  desire  to  see  the  work  of  our  generation  crowned 
by  the  greatest  civic  triumphs,  the  fulfillment  of  every 
promise,  and  to  behold  the  nation  free  from  all  dishonor, 
its  promises  good,  its  credit  untarnished,  and  its  wealth  and 
power  increasing  and  expanding." 

On  the  13th  of  May,  1874,  a  bill  was  brought  in  by  the 
Finance  Committee,  on  which  Mr.  Sherman  spoke.  The 
central  idea  of  the  bill  was  free  banking.  It  may  be  of  in 
terest  to  the  reader  to  learn  in  a  few  words  what  Mr.  Sher 
man's  idea  was  at  that  time  upon  banking.  Wherever  the 
word  free  occurs,  or  can  be  introduced  with  a  due  regard 
to  public  welfare  and  the  rights  of  others,  he  is  in  favor 
of  it.  He  is  not  in  favor  of  free  bulldozing,  nor  free  ballot- 
box  stuffing,  nor  any  kind  of  freedom  that  harms  others ; 
but  he  is  in  favor  of  all  just  liberty.  He  and  his  family 
for  ten  generations  back  have  been  for  liberty  and  against 
oppression.  Ever  since  he  went  to  Kansas  on  the  commit 
tee  to  investigate  violence  there,  he  has  been  in  favor  of 
free  soil,  free  men,  free  schools,  and  a  free  press.  But 
there  is  one  principle  that  is  dearer  to  him  than  liberty, 
and  that  is  obedience  to  the  law,  keeping  covenants,  and 
observing  treaties  and  contracts.  He  is,  strictly  speaking, 
in  favor  of  free  trade;  L  e.,  he  would  lay  no  tax,  except 
for  needed  revenue,  unless  it  were  to  prohibit  certain  arti 
cles  from  being  imported,  or  to  develop  some  new  industry 
in  the  country.  But  when  a  tax  must  be  levied,  he  would 
have  it  laid  where  it  would  do  the  least  harm  and  the  most 
good  possible.  Such  was  the  reformed  Whig  doctrine  in 
1848,  and  it  is  one  that  it  would  be  well  for  all  the  world 
to  practice. 


188  HOX.  JOHN  SHERMAX.  [CHAP. 

Mr.  Sherman  is  now  in  the  Senate  advocating  free  bank 
ing.  He  says:  "If  the  business  of  banking  were  confined 
simply  to  contracts  of  loan  and  exchange,  there  could  be 
no  objection  to  free  banking.  But  the  term  banking,  in 
common  parlance,  includes  the  power  to  issue  circulating 
notes,  to  be  used  as  money.  This  power  is  in  no  proper 
sense  essential  to  the  business  of  banking.  If  I  had  my 
way  I  would  grant  it  to  no  State  corporation  and  to  no  in 
dividual,  but  confine  it  solely  to  the  United  States,  and  use 
it  merely  to  facilitate  domestic  exchanges,  and  only  to  use 
an  amount  that  could  at  any  time  be  converted  into  coin 
at  the  will  of  the  holder.  Such,  I  believe,  was  the  design 
of  the  framers  of  the  Constitution,  who,  fresh  from  the  dis 
asters  caused  by  paper  money,  desired  to  cut  up,  and  sup 
posed  they  had  cut  up,  this  evil  by  the  roots.  The  pro 
hibition  upon  the  issue  of  bills  of  credit  by  the  States,  fairly 
construed,  prohibits  the  issue  of  paper  money  by  a  State, 
or  by  any  corporation  authorized  by  a  State. 

"If  we  were  now  in  a  condition  to  deal  with  this  ques 
tion  solely  upon  principle,  I  would  gladly  join  in  prohibit 
ing  all  p^per  r^riey  except  such  as  might  be  issued  by  the 
United  fctatef-  JXY  coin  values.  a»-  redeemable  in  coin  only. 
But,  sir,  we  knot*/  that  we  mi^t  deal  with  this  question  as 
practical  men." 

Mr.  Sherman  is  always  practical.  "As  banking,  and 
the  issue  of  bank  paper  as  money,  has  been  so  long  prac 
ticed,  it  has  become  a  matter  of  habit,  and,  therefore,  a 
necessity.  Now,  there  are  nearly  two  thousand  banks,  au 
thorized  to  issue  $354,000,000  of  paper  money.  The  bill 
before  the  Senate  proposed,  on  certain  conditions,  to  repeal 
that  restriction." 

Mr.  Sherman  first  noticed  the  objection  to  free  banking 
without  coin  redemption,  but  that  soon  passed  away. 


xii.]  THE  PANIC1.  189 

The  second  objection  noted  is,  that  ''the  business  of  issu 
ing  paper  money  is  a  Government  franchise,  and  the  Gov 
ernment  should  have  the  profit  of  it."  True;  but  this  is 
found  to  be  "  extremely  inconvenient,"  and  the  Govern 
ment  can  not  always  supply  the  want.  It  can  only  pay 
out  money  on  its  dues,  but  can  not  supply  borrowers. 

It  is  said  the  Government  loses  money  by  not  issuing  its 
own  notes  instead  of  bank  circulation;  but  the  national 
banks  are  taxed  enough  to  more  than  make  up  for  all  this. 
It  would  also  impose  on  the  Government  the  cost  of  re 
deem  in"-  these  notes,  which  would  be  immense. 

O 

AVere  the  United  States  to  issue  all  the  notes,  there 
would  be  no  possibility  of  distributing  banking  capital.  So 
that  for  the  Government  to  issue  its  own  notes  and  do  its 
own  banking  would  not  be  practicable.  On  the  whole, 
Mr.  Sherman  is  of  the  opinion  that  our  mixed  system  of 
national  banks,  and  Government  issues,  the  former  based 
upon  bonds  of  the  United  States,  redeemable  in  green 
backs  or  coin,  and  the  latter  always  in  coin,  is  the  best  that 
can  be  framed. 

The  two  kinds  of  circulation  are  alike  in  some  respects. 
They  are  both  printed  by  the  Government,  and,  jtherefore, 
one  is  no  more  likely  to  be  counterfeited  than  the  other. 
They  are  both  equally  well  secured,  and  are  both  of  uni 
form  value  throughout  the  country. 

When  the  national  bank  system  was  adopted,  it  was  un 
derstood  that  as  soon  as  the  bonds  should  be  on  a  par  with 
gold,  those  banks  themselves  would  redeem  all  these  notes, 
as  well  as  their  own.  This  was  a  great  argument  in  their 
favor;  and  now,  Mr.  Sherman  says,  if  the  national  banks 
are  not  to  redeem  their  issues,  let  them  fall. 

"An  advantage  of  free  banking  is,  that  it  repeals  the 
monopoly  of  bonking.  It  is  a  great  advantage  to  our 


190  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP.  xn. 

system  of  currency,  to  abolish  all  monopolies,  and  to  put 
all  people  upon  the  same  footing."  The  remaining  remarks 
on  this  bill  go  to  show  that  the  main  purpose  and  aim  of 
the  free  banking  proposition  was  to  stimulate  and  furnish 
motives  for  urging  on  specie  payments.  One  provision  of 
it  was,  that  for  every  million  dollars  issued,  half  a  million 
greenbacks  should  be  retired.  This  would  appreciate  the 
United  States  notes,  and  tend  to  specie  payments. 

It  is  perfectly  surprising  to  witness  the  shrewd  turns 
and  ingenious  plans  of  Senator  Sherman  to  compel  the 
United  States  to  be  honest  and  honorable  enough  to  pay 
its  debts,  as  it  had  promised. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  RESUMPTION   ACT. 

IN  every  great  event  that  has  a  beginning,  a  progress 
and  ending,  there  is  somewhere  a  crisis.  This  is  particu 
larly  the  case  in  fevers  and  some  other  disorders,  whether 
individual  or  national.  One  great  disorder  of  the  Ameri 
can  nation  has  been  the  institution  of  slavery,  and  its  crisis 
was  the  great  rebellion.  As  this  disease  affected  the  whole 
body  politic  in  all  its  essential  elements,  the  family,  the 
school,  the  guild,  the  church,  and  the  State,  and  every  de 
partment  of  each,  there  are,  of  course,  various  crises  at 
various  times.  The  military  crisis  of  the  rebellion  was 
doubtless  at  Gettysburg;  the  moral  and  civil  crisis  was 
when  the  colored  man  was  made  equal  to  the  white  man 
as  to  pay  in  the  army ;  and  the  true  and  healthful  crisis 
in  the  finances  of  the  country  was  when  the  resumption 
act  was  passed,  fixing  the  time  of  specie  payments.  Mr. 
Sherman  himself  regarded  this  as  the  longest  and  severest 
conflict  during  his  whole  time  of  twenty-two  years  in  Con 
gress.  Some  six  weeks  were  occupied  in  discovering  plans 
and  compromises  by  which  enough  votes  could  be  secured 
to  pass  it;  and  it  was  finally  passed,  partly  from  a  disposi 
tion  to  let  the  Ohio  Senator  try  and  see  if  he  could  suc 
ceed,  and  partly  perhaps  with  the  hope  of  seeing  him  fail ; 
partly  because  the  favorers  of  contraction  believed  it  meant 

(191) 


!!>->  HOX.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

contraction,  and  partly  because  the  favorers  of  expansion 
thought  it  meant  expansion.  Mr.  Sherman  persisted  in 
urging  that  it  did  not  mean  contraction,  but  did  mean  to 
set  a  time  when  we  would  pay  an  honest  debt,  and  make 
greenbacks  worth  as  much  as  gold. 

To  show  the  notions  he  had  to  combat,  the  latter  part 
of  the  short  speech  on  its  passage  is  here  inserted  entire. 
After  explaining  the  provisions  of  the  bill,  Mr.  Sherman 
said : 

"Mr.  President,  these  are  all  the  provisions  contained  in 
this  bill.  They  are  simple  and  easily  understood,  and 
every  Senator  can  pass  his  judgment  upon  them  readily. 

"Now  I  desire  to  approach  a  class  of  questions  that  is 
not  embraced  in  this  bill.  Many  such  questions— and  I 
could  name  fifty— are  not  included  in  this  bill ;  and  I  may 
say  this:  that  if  there  should  be  a  successful  effort,  by  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States,  to  ingraft  any  of  this  multi 
tude  of  doubtful  or  contested  questions  upon  the  face  of 
this  bill,  it  would  inevitably  tend  to  its  defeat.  I  am  free 
to  say  that  if  I  were  called  upon  to  frame  a  bill  to  accom 
plish  the  purpose  declared  in  the  title  of  this  bill,  I  would 
have  provided  some  means  of  gradual  redemption  between 
this  and  the  time  fixed  for  final  specie  payments.  All  of 
these  means  are  open  to  objection.  There  have  been  three 
different  plans  proposed  to  prepare  for  specie  payments, 
and  only  three. 

"One  is  what  is  called  the  contraction  plan.  The  sim 
plest  and  most  direct  way  to  specie  payments  is  undoubt 
edly  the  gradual  withdrawal  of  United  States  notes,  or  the 
contraction  of  the  currency.  Now,  we  knowr  very  well  the 
feeling  with  which  that  idea  is  regarded,  not  only  in  this 
Senate,  but  all  through  the  country.  It  is  believed  to 
operate  as  a  disturbing  element  in  all  the  business  relations 


xiii.]  THE  RESUMPTION  ACT.  193 

of  life;  to  add  to  the  burden  of  the  debtor  by  making 
scarce  that  article  in  which  he  is  bound  to  pay  his  debts; 
and  there  has  been  an  honest  and  sincere  opposition  to  this 
theory  of  contraction.  Therefore,  although  it  may  be  the 
simplest  and  the  best  way  to  reach  specie  payments,  it  is 
entirely  omitted  from  this  bill. 

"The  second  plan— one  that  I  have  favored  myself  often, 
and  would  favor  now  if  I  had  my  own  way,  and  had  no 
opinion  to  consult  but  my  own — is  that  of  converting 
United  States  notes  into  a  bond  that  would  gradually  ap 
preciate  our  notes  to  par  in  gold.  That  has  always  been  a 
favorite  idea  of  mine.  There  is  nothing  of  that  kind  in  this 
bill,  except  those  provisions  which  authorize  the  Secretary 
of  the  Treasury  to  issue  bonds  to  retire  the  greenbacks,  as 
bank  notes  are  issued,  and  to  issue  bonds  to  provide  for 
and  to  maintain  resumption,  I,  therefore,  have  been  com 
pelled  to  surrender  my  ideas  on  this  bill,  in  order  to  accom 
plish  a  good  object,  without  using  the  means  that  have  been 
held  objectionable  by  many  Senators. 

"The  third  plan  of  resumption,  which  has  been  favored 
very  extensively  in  this  country,  is  that  of  a  graduated 
scale— what  I  call  the  English  plan ;  that  is,  that  we  pro 
vide  now  for  the  redemption  at  a  fixed  rate,  or  scale  of 
rates,  of  so  much  gold  for  a  specific  sum  of  United  States 
notes.  At  present  rates,  we  would  give  about  $90  of  gold 
for  $100  of  greenbacks,  and  then  provide  for  a  graduated 
scale  by  which  we  would  approach  specie  payments  con 
stantly,  and  reach  it  at  a  fixed  day.  This  ma}^  be  called  a 
gradual  redemption.  This,  also,  is  objectionable  to  many 
persons,  from  the  idea  that  it  compels  us  to  enter  the 
money  markets  of  the  world  to  discount  our  own  paper. 
It  is  an  ideal  objection,  but  a  very  strong  objection — an 
objection  that  has  force  with  a  great  many  people.  We 


1M  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP, 

liave  undertaken  to  redeem  these  notes  in  coin,  and  it  is  at 
least  a  question  of  doubtful  ethics  whether  we  ought  to  en 
ter  into  the  markets  of  the  world  and  buy  our  own  notes 
at  a  discount.  Although  that  plan  was  adopted  in  En 
gland,  ami  successfully  carried  into  execution,  yet  there  is 
a  strong  objection  to  it  in  this  country,  and,  therefore, 
that  mode  is  abandoned.  Either  of  these  plans  I  could 
readily  support,  but  they  have  met,  and  will  meet,  with 
such  opposition  that  we  can  not  hope  to  carry  them,  or  to 
ingraft  them  in  this  bill  without  defeating  it.  We  have, 
then,  fallen  back  on  these  gradual  steps:  first,  to  retire  the 
fractional  currency ;  second,  to  reduce  United  States  notes 
as  bank  notes  are  increased,  and  then  to  rest  our  plan  of 
redemption  upon  the  declaration  made,  on  the  faith  of  the 
United  States,  that,  at  the  time  fixed  by  the  bill,  we  will 
resume  the  payment  of  the  United  States  notes  in  coin  at 
par.  That  is  the  whole  of  this  bill. 

"Not  only  are  all  these  plans  of  gradual  redemption 
omitted  from  the  bill,  but  there  are  also  many  troublesome 
questions  omitted  from  the  bill.  If  we  undertake  to  de 
fine  precisely  what  shall  be  done  four  years  hence  on  the 
resumption  of  specie  payments,  to  say  whether  the  legal- 
tender  act  shall  then  be  repealed,  or  whether  it  shall  be  re 
pealed  before  or  not,  we  enter  upon  a  difficult  field,  and 
will  undoubtedly  divide  the  Senate  and  divide  the  coun 
try.  Is  it  not  better  to  postpone,  until  the  time  comes  to 
meet  them,  these  questions  which  must  then  arise,  rather 
than  engage  in  an  attempt  to  settle  them  now,  four  years 
in  advance  ? 

"We  declare  the  time  when  specie  payments  shall  be 
resumed,  in  order  to  give  fair  notice,  so  that  market  values 
for  the  future  may  be  adjusted,  and  so  that  people  will 
prepare  themselves  for  resumption.  Our  people  may  then 


xni.]  THP:  RESUMPTION  ACT.  195 

base  their  transactions  upon  that  solemn  declaration   made 
by  Congress. 

"  In  regard  to  the  other  point,  as  to  the  reissue  of  the 
fractional  currency,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  first  section  is 
carefully  worded  to  require  an  equal  amount,  in  number 
and  denomination,  of  the  fractional  currency  to  be  re 
deemed,  and  that  this  process  is  to  continue  until  the  whole 
amount  of  the  fractional  currency  outstanding  shall  be  re 
deemed.  But  it  is  said  that  perhaps,  after  all  this  is  done, 
•we  can  not  compel  people  who  hold  the  fractional  currency 
to  present  it  for  redemption.  It  must  be  remembered  that 
we  can  not  coin  sufficient  money  to  redeem  all  the  forty- 
seven  millions  now  outstanding  in  less  than  three  years. 
The  question  is  raised  whether,  at  the  end  of  the  three 
years  during  which  this  process  will  go  on,  we  shall  pro 
vide,  by  peremptory  law,  that  the  fractional  currency  shall 
not  be  reissued  under  any  circumstances.  We  do  not  un 
dertake  to  do  it,  and  I  simply  say  that  we  should  leave  this 
question  just  where  the  section  leaves  it.  We  have  pro 
vided  for  the  sure  and  certain  redemption  of  this  fractional 
currency  in  a  course  of  time,  which  can  not  exceed  three 
years,  and,  therefore,  we  do  not  propose  to  go  further  and 
decide  whether  it  may  be  issued  again  or  not.  Until  it  is 
fully  redeemed,  the  currency  can  not  be  reissued,  and 
then  it  will  be  time  enough  to  determine  its  issue  or  re- 


o 

issue. 


"  In  regard  to  the  absolute  cancellation  of  the  legal- 
tender  notes  that  may  be  redeemed  under  the  operations  of 
the  free  banking  clause,  that  matter  is  also  provided  for  in 
the  same  way : 

"  'Arid  whenever  and  so  often  as  circulating  notes  shall 
be  issued  to  any  such  banking  association  so  increasing  its 
capital  or  circulating  notes,  or  so  newly  organized  as  afore- 


196  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

said,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
to  redeem  the  legal-tender  United  States  notes,  in  excess 
only  of  $300,000,000,  to  the  amount  of  eighty  per  cent,  of 
the  sum  of  national  bank  notes  so  issued  to  any  such  bank 
ing  association  as  aforesaid,  and  to  continue  such  redemp 
tion  as  such  circulating  notes  are  issued,  until  there  shall 
be  outstanding  the  sum  of  $300,000,000  of  such  legal- 
tender  United  States  notes,  and  no  more.' 

"tHow  long  will  it  take  before  this  contingency  shall 
arise?  How  long  will  it  be  before  $100,000,000  of  circu 
lating  notes  shall  be  issued  to  national  banks  ?  How  loiig 
AY  ill  it  be  before  this  process  comes  to  such  an  end  that  the 
question  is  at  all  material?  No  one  can  tell  how  fast  these 
notes  will  be  issued,  or  how  rapidly  they  will  be  called  for. 
In  the  present  condition  of  affairs  none  probably  will  be  is 
sued,  bat,  no  doubt,  with  the  revival  of  industry,  with  the 
local  demand  for  banks  here  and  there,  with  the  probable 
new  wants  of  currency,  made  necessary  by  the  increase  of 
business,  banks  will  be  organized — how  rapidly  no  man  can 
tell.  At  any  rate,  the  question  is  not  material  until  the 
whole  amount  of  $82,000,000  is  reduced,  until  the  limit  of 
$300,000,000  is  readied.  It  is,  therefore,  scarcely  neces 
sary  for  us  to  ingraft  in  this  bill  provisions  that  will  un 
doubtedly  lead  to  controversy  and  dispute,  in  order  to 
meet  a  question  that  will  be  provided  for  in  the  future. 

"At  all  events,  I  say  frankly  that  we  do  not  propose  to 
decide  that  question  in  this  bill.  I  have  no  doubt  that, 
when  the  time  arrives,  when  the  question  becomes  mate 
rial,  it  will  be  met.  Undoubtedly,  until  the  reduction  of 
the  United  States  notes  to  $300,000,000  they  can  not  be 
reissued.  The  process  must  go  on  pari  passu,  until  the 
amount  of  legal-tender  notes  is  reduced  to  $300,000,000. 
Before  that  time  will  probably  arrive,  in  the  course  of  hu- 


XIIL]  THE  RESUMPTION  ACT.  197 

man  affairs,  at  least  one  or  two  Congresses  will  have  met 
and  disappeared,  and  we  may  leave  to  the  future  these 
questions  that  tend  to  divide  us  and  distract  us,  rather 
than  undertake  to  thrust  them  into  this  bill,  and  thus  di 
vide  us,  and  prevent  us  from  doing  something  in  the  direc 
tion  at  which  we  aim. 

"  It  is  said  that  the  bill  is  open  to  the  construction  that 
the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  may  gather  up  the  eighty  per 
cent,  as  a  reserve,  and  reissue  the  notes  again,  and  that  it 
is  the  intent  of  those  who  made  the  bill  that  it  shall  be 
open.  I  leave  that  question  to  be  decided  upon  the  law  as 
it  stands.  The  case  that  is  put,  of  what  I  regarded  as  an 
illegal  issue  of  notes,  probably  may  never  arise,  and  cer 
tainly  it  can  not  arise  for  a  considerable  period  of  time. 
But,  if  there  is  any  doubt  upon  that  question,  I  leave  ev 
ery  Senator  to  construe  the  law  for  himself;  and,  if  there  is 
a  doubt  about  it,  I  say  it  is  not  wise,  as  practical  men 
dealing  with  practical  affairs,  seeking  to  accomplish  a  re 
sult,  to  introduce  into  this  bill  a  controversy  which  will  pre 
vent  that  unity  that  is  necessary  to  carry  the  good  that  is 
contained  in  this  bill. 

"  I  am  asked  whether  in  my  own  mind  the  bill  is  open  to 
that  construction. 

"  I  do  not  care  to  give  my  opinion  now.  I  have  given  my 
opinion  once  or  twice  before  in  regard  to  these  questions. 
For  instance,  I  gave  my  opinion  when  a  bill  was  originally 
before  the  Senate  four  or  five  years  ago,  that  the  reserve 
which  was  provided  in  that  bill  could  not  be  reissued,  and 
yet  that  opinion  did  not  control  the  Secretary  of  the  Treas-: 
my  for  the  time  being.  I  prefer  to  leave  that  question 
where  the  law  leaves  it,  and  to  the  judgment  of  that 
Congress  that  may  come  hereafter. 

"  But  the  question  is  asked,  whether  we  should  pass  a  bill 


198  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

on  a  subject  like  this,  so  delicate  and  so  important,  the 
meaning  of  which  is  so  obscure  that  the  champion  of  the 
bill  has  to  admit  himself  that  its  construction  will  be  left 
to  the  courts  of  the  United  States. 

"In  supporting  a  bill  of  this  kind,  I  do  not  meet  all  pos 
sible  questions  that  may  arise  in  its  construction,  and  no 
human  mind  could  do  it.  I  know  this,  and  upon  this  rock 
I  stand :  that  this  bill  has  provisions  in  it  which  tend  to 
accomplish  the  purpose  which  I  have  so  diligently  sought, 
and  I  will  not  seek  to  obstruct  its  passage  or  defeat  it  by 
thrusting  into  it  doubtful  questions  of  law  or  public  policy 
which  may  tend  to  defeat  it.  I  take  this  bill  not  as  the 
bill  that  I  should  propose  myself — a  bill  which  itself  sur 
renders  many  of  my  convictions  as  to  the  means  to  be 
employed  to  accomplish  the  particular  purpose  designed — 
but  I  take  it  because  I  see  that  every  provision  in  it  tends 
to  the  object  sought,  and  I  will  not  weaken  it  by  putting 
in  questions  of  grammar  or  construction  which  may  tend 
to  weaken  and  destroy  it.  It  seems  to  me  the  language 
is  very  strong,  and  the  provisions  ample  and  potent, 

"  *  And  to  enable  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  prepare 
and  provide  for  the  redemption  in  this  act  authorized  or 
required,  he  is  authorized  to  use  a*hy  surplus  revenues,  from 
time  to  time,  in  the  Treasury  not  otherwise  appropriated, 
and  to  issue,  sell,  and  dispose  of,  at  not  less  than  par  in 
coin,  either  of  the  descriptions  of  bonds  of  the  United 
States  described  in  the  act  of  Congress  approved  July  14, 
1870,  entitled  "An  act  to  authorize  the  refunding  of  the 
national  debt,"  with  like  qualities,  privileges,  and  exemp 
tions,  to  the  extent  necessary  to  carry  this  act  into  full 
effect,  and  to  use  the  proceeds  thereof  for  the  purpose 
aforesaid.' 

"In  other  words,  to  prepare  for  and  maintain  redemption, 


xiii.]  THE  RESUMPTION  ACT.  199 

he  may  issue  either  a  four,  or  a  four  and  a  half,  or  a  five 
per  cent,  bond,  the  lowest  that  he  can  sell  at  par  in  coin. 
We  place  in  his  hands  the  surplus  revenue  of  the  Govern 
ment.  More  than  that,  we  here  by  law  declare  our  pur 
pose,  the  purpose  of  a  Government  and  a  people  that  have 
never  violated  their  obligations  when  distinctly  made,  that 
at  this  time  and  date  we  will  do  these  things,  which i 
amount  to  a  resumption  of  specie  payments. 

"Now,  sir,  the  great  weakness  of  our  currency  is,  that 
we  have  undertaken  to  pay  our  notes  in  coin,  and  do  not 
fulfill  our  promise.  No  man  denies  that  obligation.  It  is 
so  written  upon  the  statute  books,  now  six  years  old.  But 
from  the  fact  that  we  have  not  said  at  what  time  we  will 
do  it,  the  question  is  still  open,  to  rest  upon  the  construe 
tion  which  each  Senator  and  member  may  give  to  the 
words,  'as  early  as  practicable' — an  indefinite  phrase  at 
least,  and  one  that  applies  to  all  future  ages.  The  object 
of  this  bill,  and  the  objective  point  of  this  bill,  is  to  fix  a 
time  within  which  the  honor  of  the  United  States  is 
pledged  to  redeem  these  notes  in  coin;  and  that  pledge, 
if  made  by  Congress,  and  I  trust  it  may  be  made  by  the 
whole  of  Congress,  of  all  parties,  and  made  by  the  whole 
people — that  pledge,  if  made,  will  be  redeemed.  It  is  true 
a  subsequent  Congress  may  repeal  it.  Any  thing  we  can 
do  may  be  repealed  by  a  subsequent  Congress.  All  we  can 
do  is  in  our  time  to  pledge  the  faith  of  the  United  States 
to  do  this  in  the  future ;  and  if  the  people  in  their  power 
and  might,  through  agents  hereafter  elected,  violate  this 
promise,  there  is  no  power  in  our  Government  to  prevent 
it.  We  only  know  that  they  probably  will  not  do  it ;  that 
a  pledge  thus  specific,  made  as  to  a  definite  day  and  time, 
with  ample  powers  given  to  an  executive  officer  to  execute 
it,  will  be  maintained. 


-<"->  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAX.  [cn\p. 

"  I  desire  to  say  one  word  more :  that  this  pledge  is  made 
knowing  the  full  extent  of  the  obligation  imposed  by  this 
law,  and  I  believe  that  every  Senator  who  votes  for  tin's 
bill  is  personally  pledged — all-  his  political  influence  is 
pledged — to  maintain  that  declaration,  just  as  our  fathers 
felt  themselves  bound  by  their  lives,  their  fortune,  and 
their  sacred  honor  to  maintain  the  pledges  they  made  in 
the  Declaration  of  American  Independence." 

The  following  is  the  resumption  act  as  passed  by  both 
Houses,  and  is  "inserted  here  as  a  special  memento  of  the 
chef-d'oemm  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch  : 

"Ax  ACT  to   provide    for   the  resumption  of  specie  pay 
ments  : 

"  Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representative* 

of  the  United  States  f>f  America  in  Cone/re,^  a^emblcd,  That 
the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  is  hereby  authorized  and  re 
quired,  as  rapidly  as  practicable,  to  cause  to  be  coined,  at 
the  mints  of  the  United  States,  silver  coins  of  the  denom 
inations  of  ten,  twenty -five,  and  fifty  cents,  of  standard 
value,  and  to  issue  them  in  redemption  of  an  equal  num 
ber  and  amount  of  fractional  currency  of  similar  denom 
inations;  or,  at  his  discretion,  he  may  issue  such  silver 
coins  through  the  mints,  the  subtreasuries,  public  depos 
itories,  and  post-offices  of  the  United  States;  and,  upon 
such  issue,  he  is  hereby  authorized  and  required  to  re 
deem  an  equal  amount  of  such  fractional  currency  until 
the  whole  amount  of  such  fractional  currency  outstanding 
shall  be  redeemed. 

"SEC.  2.  That  so  much  of  section  three  thousand  five 
hundred  and  twenty-four  of  the  Revised  Statutes  of  the 
United  States  as  provides  for  a  charge  of  one-fifth  of  one 
per  centum  for  converting  standard  gold  bullion  into  coin 


xiii.]  THE  RESUMPTION  ACT.  201 

is  hereby  repealed ;  and  hereafter  no  charge  shall  be  made 
for  that  service. 

"SEC.  3.  That  section  five  thousand  one  hundred  and 
seventy -seven  of  the  Revised  Statutes,  limiting  the  aggre 
gate  amount  of  circulating  notes  of  national  banking  asso 
ciations,  be  and  is  hereby  repealed;  and  each  existing 
banking  association  may  increase,  its  circulating  notes  in 
accordance  with  existing  law,  without  respect  to  said  aggre 
gate  limit ;  and  new  banking  associations  may  be  organ 
ized  in  accordance  with  existing  law,  without  respect  to 
said  aggregate  limit:  and  the  provisions  of  law  for  the 
withdrawal  and  redistribution  of  national  bank  currency 
among  the  several  States  and  territories  are  hereby  re 
pealed.  And  whenever  and  so  often  as  circulating  notes 
shall  be  issued  to  any  such  banking  association  so  increas 
ing  its  capital  or  circulating  notes,  or  so  newly  organized 
as  aforesaid,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  to  redeem  the  legal-tender  United  States  notes  in 
excess  only  of  three  hundred  millions  of  dollars,  to  the 
amount  of  eighty  per  centum  of  the  sum  of  national  bank 
notes  so  issued,  to  any  such  banking  association  as  afore 
said,  and  to  continue  such  redemption  as  such  circulating 
notes  are  issued  until  there  shall  be  outstanding  the  sum 
of  three  hundred  million  dollars  of  such  legal-tender 
United  States  notes,  and  no  more.  And  on  and  after  the 
first  day  of  January,  Anno  Domini  eighteen  hundred  and 
seventy-nine,  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  shall  redeem, 
in  coin,  the  United  States  legal-tender  notes  then  outstand 
ing,  on  their  presentation  for  redemption  at  the  office  of 
the  Assistant  Treasurer  of  the  United  States  in  the  city 
of  New  York,  in  sums  of  not  less  than  fifty  dollars.  And 
to  enable  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  prepare  and 
provide  for  the  redemption  in  this  act  authorized  or  re- 


202  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP.  xm. 

quired,  he  is  authorized  to  use  any  surplus  revenues,  from 
time  to  time,  in  the  Treasury,  not  otherwise  appropriated, 
and  to  issue,  sell,  and  dispose  of,  at  not  less  than  par,  in 
coin,  either  of  the  descriptions  of  bonds  of  the  United 
States  described  in  the  act  of  Congress  approved  July  four 
teenth,  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy,  entitled  "An  act 
to  authorize  the  refunding  of  the  national  debt,"  with  like 
qualities,  privileges,  and  exemptions,  to  the  extent  neces 
sary  to  carry  this  act  into  full  effect,  and  to  use"  the  pro 
ceeds  thereof  for  the  purposes  aforesaid.  And  all  provis 
ions  of  law  inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this  act  are 
hereby  repealed. 

1  'Approved  January  14,  1875." 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

COINAGE. 

THE  people  of  this  country  are  under  no  slight  obliga 
tions  to  Mr.  Sherman  for  the  general  information  he  has 
given  upon  this  important  subject.  The  chief  part  of  this 
-is  contained  in  two  speeches — one  made  April  11,  1876,  on 
"Fractional  Currency  and  Silver  Coinage,"  and  the  other 
June  8th,  the  same  year,  upon  "Legal  Tender  of  Silver 
Coin."  Of  course,  the  limits  prescribed  to  the  present 
volume  forbid  introducing  all  the  information  therein  con 
tained,  yet  it  seemed  to  the  writer  important  to  introduce 
something  of  it,  to  give  an  idea  of  the  real  service  Mr. 
Sherman  has  done  his  country,  and  also  to  disseminate  the 
information  more  widely  than  is  done  in  the  larger  volume 
of  speeches.  The  publishing  of  that  book  should  not  be 
accounted  as  among  the  least  valuable  of  his  labors.  It 
will  be  looked  back  to  as  a  brilliant  light  to  guide  future 
statesmen  in  the  management  of  national  affairs  in  this  and 
other  countries.  The  book  called  SpeecJtes  and  Reports  of 
John  Sherman  may  and  ought  to  be  regarded  as  a  text 
book  on  finance,  and  this  volume  may  be  considered  in  part 
as  a  humble  attempt  at  an  abridgment  for  beginners. 

Mr.  Sherman  begins  by  noticing  the  dispute  as  to  whether 
a  single  or  double  standard  is  the  better,  but  dismisses  the 
theory  of  it  by  saying  he  could  refer  Senators  to  about  a 
hundred  volumes  on  tne  subject,  showing  that  he  had 

^203) 


L'04  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

studied  the  matter  thoroughly.  He  was  also  a  member  of 
the  Paris  monetary  conference  of  1867,  so  that  the  reader 
has  here  the  views  of  a  man  who  knows  whereof  he 
speaks. 

In  1702,  the  relative  value  of  gold  to  silver,  in  this 
country,  was  established  as  being  fifteen  to  one.  There 
was  no  discussion  about  it,  except  whether  the  dollar  should 
have  on  it.  the  head  of  liberty  or  of  the  President.  This 
enactment  drove  gold  out  of  the  country,  because  it  was 
worth  more  than  fifteen  to  one.  It  demonetized  gold.  In 
1834,  Congress  reduced  the  weight  of  gold,  making  one 
ounce  of  gold  worth  sixteen  of  silver.  This  was  as  much 
too  low  as  the  other  was  too  high.  Now,  silver  was  so 
valuable  that  it  left  the  country,  and  we  had  nothing  but 
gold.  In  1853,  an  attempt  was  made  to  correct  this  evil, 
for  small  change  became  scarce.  It  was  done,  so  far  as 
small  change  was  concerned,  by  making  the  half  dollar  four 
teen  and  a  quarter  grains  lighter  than  before,  and  other 
subsidiary  coin  in  proportion,  and  making  no  change  in  the 
dollar.  This  brought  the  small  change  in,  but  excluded 
the  dollar  still,  so  that  we  had  only  gold  dollars.  Between 
1 853  and  1861 ,  $48,000,000  of  small  silver  was  issued.  In 
1873,  the  value  of  gold  was  slightly  increased  by  allowing 
free  coinage,  and  of  silver  by  adding  nearly  a  grain  to  the 
half  dollar,  and  as  the  silver  dollar  was  worth  more  than 
the  gold  dollar,  it  had  left  the  country,  and,  in  revising  the 
statutes,  was  dropped.  By  the  same  bill  the  trade  dollar 
was  authorized  to  be  coined  for  any  who  would  pay  the 
cost  of  coining,  and  the  mistake  about  it  was  that  it  was 
made  a  legal  tender  to  the  amount  of  five  dollars;  thus 
putting  it  in  the  power  of  private  individuals  to  increase 
indefinitely  the  legal-tender  circulation.  Mr.  Sherman 
urged  the  repeal  of  the  legal-tender  character  of  the  trade 


Xiv.]  COINAGE.  205 

dollar,  rather  than  disappoint  merchants  by  suppressing  it. 
This  is  the  history  of  American  silver  coinage. 

In  England,  the  coinage  of  gold  is  free,  and  also  silver, 
except  that  the  Government  retains  four  shillings  in  sixty- 
six  of  bullion,  but  makes  the  sixty-two  shillings  of  bullion 
into  sixty-six  of  coin,  or  tokens,  as  they  call  them.  Their 
alloy  of  copper  is  seventy-five  parts  in  a  thousand,  ours  a 
hundred.  The  value  of  an  English  shilling  in  our  money 
is  twenty-one  cents  and  four  mills.  Though  their  silver  is 
worth  six  or  seven  per  cent,  less  than  gold,  yet  with  32,- 
000,000  people  they  so  limit  it  as  to  keep  $60,000,000  of  it 
in  circulation  as  legal  tender  to  the  amount  of  nearly  ten 
dollars. 

The  twenty-five  cent  piece  of  Canada  is  worth  a  little  less 
than  ours,  so  that  our  coin  will  doubtless  fill  the  channels 
of  trade  there.  The  money  of  France,  Belgium,  Switzer 
land,  and  Italy  is  based  mainly  on  the  French  standard  of 
1792,  and  regulated  by  the  convention  of  1865,  the  most 
important  monetary  convention  now  in  force.  The  weight 
of  a  five-franc  piece  is  precisely  the  weight  and  fineness  of 
our  two  half  dollars  or  four  quarters.  The  limit  of  issue  is 
fixed  at  six  francs—  i.  e.,  $1.20 — per  inhabitant,  which 
gives  to  the  four  countries  about  $82,000,000  subsidiary 
coin.  Each  nation  has  its  standard,  besides,  of  fifteen  and  a 
half  to  one.  The  same  law  applied  to  us  would  make  a 
circulation  of  about  $50,000,000,  but  it  is  thought  that, 
from  the  more  scattered  population  of  our  country,  we  can 
maintain  a  circulation  of  subsidiary  coin  of  seventy  or 
eighty  million  dollars. 

The  legal  tender  of  this  convention  is  ten  dollars  or 
under,  among  private  individuals,  twice  that  between  States. 
This  is  the  conventional  law  for  72,000,000  people.  In 
the  convention  of  1867,  which  Mr.  Sherman  attended,  this 


206  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

would  probably  have  become  the  basis  of  the  commerce  of 
the  world,  had  Germany  consented,  and  the  English  been 
less  proud  of  their  pound  sterling. 

"There  is  a  great  deal  of  misapprehension  in  regard  to 
the  recent  action  of  Germany  respecting  silver.  The  com 
mon  impression  is  that  Germany  has  changed  her  standard 
from  silver  to  gold,  and  demonetized  silver.  Not  so.  She 
has  adopted  a  double  standard  of  gold  and  silver.  Still  a 
larger  silver  coinage  is  authorized  in  Germany  than  is 
found  elsewhere  in  Europe.  In  France,  it  is  $1.20  per 
inhabitant;  in  England,  $2.00;  with  us,  $1.25,  so  far;  and 
in  Germany  it  is  $2.38,  making  $100,000,000  of  silver 
coin.  The  amount  of  silver  outstanding  in  Germany  was 
about  $400,000,000.  There  is  still  outstanding  of' legal 
tender,  old  coinage,  $180,000,000,  and  $50,000,000  of  the 
new  silver,  besides  $300,000,000  in  gold,  which  displaces 
$170,000,000  of  silver.  This  has  brought  our  trade  dollar 
from  1.03  to  .91." 

This  move  caused  a  struggle  for  gold  between  the  great 
nations,  ivyhich  raised  the  price  of  that  metal,  so  that  the 
late  change  is  not  so  much  a  fall  in  silver  as  a  rise  in  gold, 
It  was  readily  seen  that  if  $320,000,000  of  silver  coin  were 
demonetized,  and  $350,000,000  of  gold  coin  made  the  sole 
standard,  it  would  add  greatly  to  the  value  of  gold,  and 
now  (1876),  in  the  three  countries,  England,  France,  and 
Germany,  are  $600,000,000  in  gold,  or  nearly  one-fifth  of 
the  supply  of  the  world.  This  process  will  certainly  be 
arrested.  Mr.  Sherman  said: 

"The  utter  ruin  that  would  come  to  mankind,  especially 
to  the  poorer  nations,  by  the  entire  demonetization  of  silver, 
can  not  be  estimated  by  us.  Take  one-half  of  the  solid 
money  of  the  world  out  of  existence,  take  the  sole  standard 
of  more  than  two-thirds  of  the  human  race,  reduce  it  to  a 


xiv.]  COINAGE.  207 

base  metal,  and  the  effect  upon  the  commerce  of  the  world 
would  be  incalculable.  It  can  not  be  done,  it  will  not  be 
done.  There  is  no  danger  of  it.  These  two  metals  have 
traveled  side  by  side  from  the  beginning  of  time.  The 
records  of  human  history  do  not  go  back  to  a  time  where 
they  did  not  move  together.  They  have  varied  in  value, 
sometimes  one  and  sometimes  the  other  being  higher;  but 
they  have  gone  on,  gold  the  money  of  the  rich,  silver  the 
money  of  the  poor,  the  one  to  measure  acquired  wealth, 
the  other  to  measure  the  daily  necessities  of  life,  and,  sir, 
no  act  of  parliament,  although  it  may  disturb  for  a  mo 
ment  the  relation  of  these  two  metals  to  each  other,  noth 
ing  but  the  act  of  God,  can  destroy  the  use  of  both  of  them 
by  mankind. 

"  In  ancient  times  the  relative  value  was  about  one  ounce 
of  gold  to  thirteen  and  one-half  of  silver ;  toward  the  end 
of  the  Koman  Empire,  one  to  fourteen  and  one-half;  in  the 
middle  ages  down  to  the  fifteenth  century,  one  to  sixteen. 
After  the  discovery  of  America,  gold  fell  rapidly  down  to 
one  of  gold  to  eleven  of  silver.  After  the  beginning  of  the 
seventeenth  century,  it  began  to  rise  gradually,  and  at  the 
end  of  the  eighteenth,  was  one  to  fifteen  and  a  half,  and 
remained  at  about  the  same  till  since  1873,  when  the  fall 
of  silver  has  been  rather  rapid." 

From  this  view  Mr.  Sherman  drew  the  following  con 
clusion,  which  all  will  do  well  to  remember,  whether  acting 
in  a  public  capacity  or  voting  in  private : 

1.  The  precise  relative  value  of  gold  and  silver  can  not 
be  fixed. 

2.  When  a  coin  is  worth  more  than  the  legal  standard, 
it  will  leave  the  country. 

3.  To  prevent  depreciation  silver  is  issued  as  token  coin- 


208  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN  [CHAP, 

age  of  less  value  than  gold,  but  kept  at  par  by  a  limitation 
in  quantity. 

4.  Demonetization  of  silver  raises  the  price  of  gold. 

5.  Both  coins  are  indispensable. 

6.  The  causes  of  the  decline  are  temporary. 

7.  The  general  monetizing  of  silver  now  would  be  to 
invite  to  our  country,  in  exchange  for  bonds,  the  silver  of 
Europe,  and  leave  us  with  a  depreciated  currency. 

8.  The  decline  of  silver  now  enables  us  to  take  up  our 
fractional  currency  without  loss,  without  asing  our  gold  or 
contracting  the  currency. 

Mr.  Sherman  urged  that  subsidiary  coin  should  be  legal 
tender  for  five  dollars,  and  that  the  old  dollar,  the  first  one, 
not  412.5  grains  but  412.8  grains,  be  restored  and  made 
legal  tender  for  ten  dollars,  but  was  willing  to  enlarge  to 
twenty,  as  a  compromise. 

It  was  objected  that  this  \vas  an  entering  wedge  to  a 
double  standard.  Mr.  Sherman  said  we  have  always  had  a 
double  standard.  Until  three  years  ago  the  dollar  was  a 
full  legal  tender,  and  every  dollar  we  owe  could  have  been 
paid  in  dollars  of  that  standard. 

One  parting  word  Mr.  Sherman  has:  "And,  sir,  any 
intimation  by  Congress,  any  effort  by  Congress  to  impair 
the  public  debt  or  prevent  its  full  payment  in  gold  coin, 
would,  in  my  judgment,  do  more  harm  than  all  the  silver 
that  can  be  issued  under  this  or  any  other  law  can  do  good." 

On  the  8th  of  June,  two  months  later,  Mr.  Sherman  ad 
dressed  the  Senate  on  the  bill  to  amend  the  laws  relating  to 
legal  tender  of  silver  coin.  There  were  two  main  questions : 

1.  Shall  silver  coin  be  exchanged  for  United  States 
notes,  as  well  as  for  fractional  currency?  Certainly,  says 
Mr.  Sherman,  it  being  at  the  option  of  holders  whether  or 
not  to  part  with  them  for  silver. 


xiv.  ]  COINAGE.  209 

2.  Is  it  wise  to  receive  the  old  silver  dollar  with  a  view 
to  exchange  it  for  United  States  notes?  The  Committee 
proposed  the  silver  dollar,  not  as  a  legal  tender  for  gold 
contracts,  but  only  as  a  tender  for  currency  contracts  not 
exceeding  twenty  dollars  in  any  one  payment,  "I  would 
prefer,"  says  Mr.  Sherman,  "to  leave  the  silver  dollar  to 
stand  on  its  intrinsic  value  as  the  smaller  coin,  but  there  is 
no  injustice  in  enlarging  the  limit  to  twenty  dollars." 

Mr.  Sherman  acknowledges  an  error  he  made  in  saying 
the  dollar  had  not  been  issued  since  1853.  Official  reports 
show  that  large  quantities  were  issued  from  1870  to  1873, 
when  it  was  demonetized.  Mr.  Sherman  says  the  only 
reason  that  silver  coinage  was  dropped  from  our  system 
was  that  the  silver  dollar  was  more  valuable  than  the  gold 
dollar,  and  quotes  a  report  made  by  Comptroller  Knox, 
April  25,  1870,  stating  that  the  average  premium  on  silver 
dollars  above  gold  for  the  last  six  years  had  been  three  per 
cent. 

Mr.  Sherman's  view  is  that  gold  should  be  the  standard 
of  value,  but  that  silver  should  be  coined  in  limited  quan 
tities  of  slightly  less  value  than  gold,  but  kept  at  par  by 
being  limited  in  quality,  and  made  a  legal  tender  for  small 
amounts.  But  if  a  limi table  system  be  adopted,  the  just 
relative  value  should  be  fixed  at  that  time — say  one  ounce 
of  gold  to  equal  in  value  seventeen  and  a  half  of  silver. 

18 


CHAPTER  XV. 

EFFORTS   AT   REPEAL   ANSWERED. 

AFTER  the  passage  of  the  Resumption  Act,  in  1875,  it 
will  be  remembered  that  most  strenuous  efforts  were  made 
to  secure  its  repeal.  The  opposition,  in  truth,  never 
ceased  till  resumption  took  place,  nor  then  either.  It  was 
so  inwrought  into  the  political  opinions  of  men  that,  to  this 
day  some  will,  with  great  reluctance,  admit  its  success; 
when,  as  Secretary  Schurz  said  at  Cincinnati,  "You  might 
as  well  repeal  this  morning's  sunrise  as  to  repeal  resump 
tion." 

In  December,  1877,  nearly  three  years  after  the  passage 
of  the  act,  the  editor  of  the  North  American  Review  sought 
the  opinions  of  leading  statesmen  upon  the  subject,  and 
embodied  them  in  what  has  since  been  called  a  "sym 
posium."  Their  names  were  Hugh  McCulloch,  "Wm.  D. 
Kelley,  David  A.  Wells,  Thomas  Ewing,  and  Joseph  S. 
Ropes.  After  these  had  written,  their  papers  were  sub 
mitted  to  Senator  Sherman,  and  he  was  requested  to  pre 
sent  his  views,  to  be  published  along  with  theirs.  What 
their  views  were  will  be  sufficiently  apparent  from  Mr. 
Sherman's  answer,  which  is  as  follows,  from  the  North 
American  Review,  for  November  and  December,  1877: 

The  editor  of  the  North  American  Review  lays  before  me  sev 
eral  papers,  prepared  by  gentlemen  of  distinction,  upon  the 
general  subject  of  resumption,  presenting  opposite  views,  and 

(210) 


CHAP,  xv.]        EFFORTS  AT  REPEAT,  ANSWERED,  211 

asks  me  briefly  to  comment  upon  them.  This  I  could  hardly  do 
in  a  short  statement,  nor  is  it  necessary,  perhaps,  as  the  mistakes 
and  exaggerations  of  extreme  opinions  are  sufficiently  illustrated 
and  answered  in  the  opposite  views  of  the  writers  of  these  arti 
cles.  Perhaps  the  editor  will  be  satisfied,  in  his  commendable 
search  after  truth  through  discussion,  with  a  brief  reply  to  some 
of  the  general  positions  taken  by  the  two  opposing  sides  on  this 
question. 

Judge  Kelley  and  General  Ewing  may  fairly  be  said  to  represent 
the  inflation  or  extreme  paper-money  view.  The  substance  of 
their  papers  is  an  eloquent  but  rather  overdrawn  picture  of  the 
financial  distress  through  which  we  have  recently  passed;  but  the 
great  error  into  which  they  have  fallen,  and  into  which  it  is 
strange  that  men  so  acute  of  intellect  as  they  are  should  fall,  is 
to  attribute  this  financial  distress  to  the  resumption  act,  instead 
of  to  its  real  and  only  cause,  the  unparalleled  inflation  of  paper 
money  and  credits  during  and  since  the  war.  The  losses  by  the 
Chicago  fire  of  1872,  the  still  greater  trouble  that  culminated  in 
the  panic  of  1873, — all  the  losses,  failures,  distress,  and  embarrass 
ment,  the  reckless  and  foolish  accumulation  of  municipal  debts, 
credits,  devices,  and  frauds,  the  natural  effect  of  inflated  and  de 
preciated  paper  money — all  these  they  absurdly  charge  to  an  act 
of  Congress  that  was  not  passed  until  January,  1875.  Only  one 
provision  of  this  act — that  to  substitute  silver  money  for  frac 
tional  currency — had  been  partially  put  in  force  previous  to 
March  last.  No  other  important  step  under  the  law  had  then 
been  taken,  and  since  then  in  its  practical  results  it  has  been  one 
of  the  chief  causes  of  our  present  improved  and  improving  finan 
cial  condition.  It  is  strange  that  in  the  writings  and  speeches  of 
these  gentlemen  they  overlooked  the  fact  that  the  panic  of  1873, 
and  all  the  wild  and  visionary  schemes  that  preceded  it,  together 
with  all  the  train  of  events  that  led  to  every  failure  that  has  oc 
curred  since,  had  been  fully  consummated  before  the  resumption 
act  was  passed,  and  that  the  resumption  act  was  the  remedy  pro 
vided  by  Congress  to  check  and  cure  these  evils,  and  is  now  in 
full  tide  of  successful  execution.  Their  eloquence  is  wasted,  ex 
cept  to  show  that  depreciated  and  inflated  paper  money  has  pro 
duced  in  our  country,  as  it  has  produced  in  other  countries,  the 


•2i-2  HUN.  JOHN  SHERMAN. 

same  result  of  stagnation,  distress,  bankruptcy,  and  ruin;  that 
war,  which  makes  necessary  a  depreciated  and  inflated  paper 
money,  is  the  primal  cause  of  these  troubles;  that  it  was  so  after 
the  war  of  the  Revolution,  after  the  great  wars  in  Europe,  and 
would  have  been  even  worse  in  our  own  country  but  for  its  won 
derful  vitality  and  resources.  If  at  the  close  of  the  war  we  had 
promptly  taken  steps  toward  specie  payments,  much  of  the  evil 
would  have  been  avoided,  and  the  municipal  and  private  debts 
which  now  burden  our  people  would  never  have  been  contracted. 
The  postponement  of  resumption  was  a  great  error,  but  was  partly 
excused  by  the  destruction  of  values  caused  by  the  war  and  by 
the  exaggerated  fears  in  the  popular  inmd  of  contracting  the 
currency  to  a  peace  standard. 

My  only  reply  to  these  gentlemen  would  be  that  the  distresses 
they  complain  of  were  the  direct,  certain,  and  unavoidable  result 
of  the  very  policy  of  inflation  which  they  favor,  and  that  it 
would  be  just  as  idle  now  to  keep  up  this  inflation  with  the  hope 
of  prosperity  ae  it  would  be  to  advise  a  drunkard  to  keep  on 
drinking  in  the  hope  of  reform. 

To  attribute  failures  and  distress  to  the  resumption  act  instead 
of  to  depreciated  paper  money  is  but  a  repetition  of  the  complaint 
of  the  wolf  against  the  lamb  for  roiling  the  water.  It  is  like 
swearing  at  the  doctor  for  causing  pains  in  administering  reme 
dies  for  a  raging  fever.  The  homoeopathic  doses  administered 
under  the  resumption  act  prior  to  March,  1877,  had  one  virtue, 
if  no  other;  they  could  do  no  possible  harm,  if  they  did  not  do 
any  good.  Since  the  1st  of  March  the  steps  taken  for  resumption 
have  been  so  rapid  and  marked  as  to  produce  important  direct 
results,  but  they  have  been  constantly  accompanied  with  advanc 
ing  prosperity,  increasing  trade,  and  have  given  us  the  first  broad 
glimmering  of  returning  light  after  a  period  of  distress  and 
trouble. 

The  resumption  act  was  intended  by  Congress  as  a  remedy  for 
the  evils  under  which  we  were  then  suffering.  It  was  passed  sev 
enteen  months  after  the  panic  of  1873,  and  when  we  wrere  in  the 
midst  of  all  the  evils  of  inflation.  The  experiment  of  further 
inflation  to  cure  inflation  was  fairly,  though  illegally  tried,  by 
throwing  into  the  maelstrom  $26,000,000  of  United  States  notes 


xv.J  EFFORTS  AT  REPEAL  ANSWERED.  ,213 

that  had  been  retired  and  cancelled.  Every  device  for  relief,  as 
well  for  resumption  as  for  expansion,  had  been  fruitlessly  dis 
cussed  in  Congress  without  agreement.  The  subject  in  every 
phase  had  been  considered  by  the  people  during  all  that  time.  In 
the  fall  of  1874  public  sentiment  had  crystallized  in  favor  of  some 
step  toward  the  resumption  of  the  specie  standard.  This  led  to 
the  passage  of  the  resumption  act.  This  act  was  simply  a  decla 
ration  that  we  would  restore  the  value  of  our  paper  dollar  to  the 
specie  standard  by  the  1st  of  January,  1879.  The  mode  and 
means  by  which  this  was  to  be  done  were  not  pointed  out  as  they 
ought  to  have  been,  but  the  details  were  left  to  the  Secretary  of 
the  Treasury,  and  the  powers  conferred  were  ample  and  definite. 
This  remedy  was  the  natural  one,  the  one  that  all  nations  have 
prescribed,  the  one  that  our  fathers  followed  after  the  Revolution, 
which  England  and  France  have  more  than  once  followed,  and 
which  every  nation  must  follow  that  is  driven  for  the  time  from 
the  specie  standard.  No  human  device  has  ever  sufficed  to  relieve  a 
nation  that  adopts  irredeemable  paper  money  from  the  necessity 
of  returning  to  the  only  natural  standards  of  value — gold  and 
silver.  This  act  was  passed  as  the  result  of  wide  differences  of 
opinion  that  could  not  be  reconciled,  and  did  not  contemplate  sud 
den  changes  or  movements. 

Four  years  were  allowed  to  prepare  and  to  provide  for  resump 
tion.  Thus  far,  prior  to  March  last,  $28,743,318  silver  was  sub 
stituted  for  $17,074,317  fractional  currency  retired ;  no  gold  was 
accumulated,  and  greenbacks  were  retired  only  to  the  extent  of 
eighty  per  cent.,  as  national  bank  -notes  were  issued.  This  plan 
of  resumption  is  confessedly  not  a  perfect  plan,  and  almost  every 
one  has  desired  to  make  amendments  to  it,  but  it  is  the  only  one 
that  Congress  would  grant,  and  it  is  now  demonstrated  that  under 
the  provisions  of  that  act  the  specie  standard  can  be  reached  by  the 
1st  of  January,  1879.  I  repeat  what  I  have  said  elsewhere,  that 
resumption  can  be,  ought  to  be,  and  will  be  secured  if  this  law  is 
not  repealed  by  Congress. 

And  here  I  should  refer  to  the  papers  submitted  by  Mr.  McCul- 
loch  and  Mr.  Ropes,  all  very  well  stated,  all  very  well  written,  and 
with  many  of  their  ideas  I  heartily  agree.  But  what  is  the  use  of 
talking  about  other  plans  of  resumption?  The  idea  suggested  by 


214  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP, 

these  gentlemen  was  advocated  in  Congress  for  years.  A  simple 
funding  act  was  proposed  by  the  Committee  on  Finance  in  1866, 
and  was  pressed  year  in  and  year  out.  In  the  original  draft  of  the 
funding  act,  now  a  law,  United  States  notes  were  convertible  at  the 
will  of  the  holder  into  four  per  cent,  bonds  precisely  such  as  we  are 
now  selling  at  par  in  coin.  With  this  feature  the  bill  passed  the 
Senate,  but  the  House  refused  to  pass  it.  No  proposition  has  been 
more  frequently  urged  and  acted  upon  adversely  by  Congress  than 
that  now  advocated  by  Messrs.  McCulloch  and  Hopes.  What  is 
the  use  of  wasting  ammunition  on  this  ?  What  is  the  use  ot  de 
laying  resumption  until  Congress  will  pass  such  an  act?  If  Con 
gress  would  pass  such  an  act  it  would  greatly  aid  and  expedite  re 
sumption,  and  I  cordially  join  with  these  gentlemen  in  the  hope 
that  such  a  bill  will  pa'ss,  and  advise  them,  if  they  think  they  can 
promote  it,  to  get  into  Congress  as  soon  as  possible  to  help.  I  have 
tried  the  experiment,  with  much  labor  and  no  success.  What, 
then,  is  the  use  of  distracting  attention  by  new  plans  of  resump 
tion  ?  I  receive,  on  an  average,  about  one  a  week,  some  of  which 
are  wild,  and  some  of  which  contain  very  good  ideas.  I  could  fur 
nish  from  the  Hies  of  the  Finance  Committee  as  many  plans  of  re 
sumption  as  there  are  cities  in  the  United  States.  But  it  is  mani 
fest,  to  practical  men,  that  no  legislation  can  be  obtained  from 
Congress  except  some  simple  measure  that  will  aid  the  execution 
of  the  present  law,  the  danger  being  rather  that  the  opponents  of 
resumption  will  be  strong  enough  to  arrest  the  movements  already 
made  in  that  direction. 

Now,  dismissing  for  the  moment  the  extremes  of  opinion  on  re 
sumption,  the  practical  question  is,  What  ought  to  be  done  now? 
Shall  we  abandon  the  progress  already  made  towards  a  specie 
standard,  and  commence  again  the  wild. round  of  experiments  on 
interconvertible  bonds  and  paper  money,  without  promise  or  hope 
of  redemption?  Shall  we  repeat  again  any  or  all  of  the  financial 
fallacies  which  have  marked  the  history  of  mankind,  or  shall  we 
go  steadily  forward  until  we  can  base  all  our  transactions  upon  that 
money  which,  by  the  experience  of  mankind,  is  proved  to  be  the 
best  possible  standard  of  the  value  of  all  labor  and  produc 
tions  ? 

Mr.  McCullooh  says,  truly,  that  if  any  party  should  undertake, 


xv.]  EFFORTS  AT  REPEAL  ANSWERED.  215 

in  the  face  of  the  present  movement  towards  resumption,  now  as 
sured  of  success,  to  reverse  that  policy,  it  would  do  not  only  a 
wrong  tiling,  but  a  very  foolish  thing.  But  is  it  not  equally  fool 
ish  for  the  friends  of  resumption  to  now  dispute  longer  as  to  the 
best  plan  of  resumption  ?  If  all  the  people  were  agreed  as  to  the 
policy  of  resumption,  we  should  have  strength  enough  to  divide  as 
to  the  means ;  but,  when  we  have  barely  a  majority  in  favor  of  re 
sumption  at  all,  is  it  not  better  to  cling  to  the  plan  now  in  proc 
ess  of  execution  ? 

Many  new  questions  are  thrust  into  this  controversy  that  ought 
not  to  embarrass  resumption.  Thus,  General  Ewing  insists  that 
resumption  means  the  entire  extinction  of  the  greenback  circula 
tion.  No  doubt  many  persons  are  in  favor  of  withdrawing  these 
notes  or  repealing  their  legal-tender  quality,  but  this  is  a  question 
properly  for  the  future,  my  own  conviction  being  that,  under  exist 
ing  law,  after  they  are  reduced  to  $300,000,000  and  have  been 
redeemed,  they  may  be  reissued,  and  that  the  national  bank  cur 
rency  should  be  used  simply  to  meet  the  ebb  and  flow  indispensa 
ble  to  every  good  currency.  But  this  may  be  determined  by  Con 
gress  either  way  without  affecting  the  virtue  of  the  law. 

So  the  silver  question,  entirely  within  the  power  of  Congress, 
may  be  made  a  most  essential  aid  to  resumption  if  confined  either 
in  the  amount  or  mode  of  issue  or  in  its  legal-tender  quality.  If 
issued  without  limit  upon  the  demand  of  a  depositor  of  silver  bull 
ion,  it  is  the  substitution  of  a  single  silver  standard  instead  of  the 
gold  standard.  Whatever  decision  Congress  may  arrive  at  on  this 
question,  the  Resumption  Law  must  stand,  to  prevent  our  paper 
money  from  falling  below  the  specie  standard  fixed  by  Congress. 
At  present  paper  money  is  worth  more  than  silver,  because  the 
market  value  of  silver  bullion  is  greatly  depreciated.  The  expec 
tation  of  the  redemption  of  our  paper  money  in  gold,  with  our 
demonstrated  ability  to  do  so,  has  brought  it  nearly  to  the  standard 
of  gold.  If  silver  alone  should  be  adopted  as  the  standard,  the 
paper  will  fall  even  below  that  standard,  unless  resumption  in  sil 
ver  is  provided  for  by  law. 

The  existence  and  power  of  the  national  banks  depend  entirely 
upon  the  will  of  Congress.  Banking  is  now  free,  and  this  provision 
of  law  is  a  happy  and  wise  expedient  to  prevent  any  sudden  con- 


216  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

traction  of  the  currency,  or,  as  now,  to  meet  an  unusual  demand 
for  currency.  The  Comptroller  of  Currency  is  prepared  to  issue 
promptly  any  amount  of  bank  notes  that  will  be  required.  The 
provision  for  the  redemption  and  retirement  of  this  currency  is 
now  in  successful  operation,  and  may  be  continued  in  specie-pay 
ing  times  as  now,  but  Congress  has  power  to  further  limit  or  re 
strain  this  issue,  or  to  make  any  further  provisions  necessary  to 
secure  the  prompt  redemption  of  bank  notes. 

These  are  all  questions  apart  from  the  Kesumption  Act  which 
is  intended  to  secure  the  free  conversion  of  United  States  notes 
into  coin,  such  as  is  now  provided,  or  may  hereafter  be  provided, 
by  Congress. 

There  is  only  one  other  point  as  to  the  Resumption  Act  that  it 
is  necessary  to  mention,  and  that  is  the  ability  under  it  to  secure 
resumption.  This,  I  submit,  has  been  demonstrated.  The  accu 
mulation  of  coin,  and  the  gradual  retirement  of  United  States 
notes,  will  unquestionably,  if  continued,  produce  specie  payments 
before  the  time  fixed  by  law.  The  rapid  changes  that  have 
already  been  made  in  the  value  of  United  States  notes,  by  the  pol 
icy  adopted  for  the  last  six  months,  have  been  marked  and 
decisive,  and  this  has  been  accompanied  and  followed  by  a  great 
improvement  in  all  branches  of  industry,  and  has  been  favored, 
no  doubt,  by  Providence  in  the  gift  of  a  large  crop,  for  which 
there  is  a  ready  demand. 

The  brightest  lining  of  the  dark  cloud  depicted  by  some  of  the 
writers  of  these  papers  is  to  be  seen  in  the  steady  pursuit  of  this 
policy  of  resumption.  If  the  friends  of  resumption  will  only  be 
content  with  the  plan  of  resumption  that  is  now  upon  the  statute- 
book,  securing  only  such  additional  legislation  in  aid  of  resump 
tion  as  Congress,  in  its  wisdom,  may  see  proper  to  grant,  there 
need  be  no  fear  of  the  result. 

We  need  not  raise  the  question  presented  by  Mr.  Wells,  nor  do 
I  see  that  it  would  be  effective;  for,  if  a  law  is  passed  repealing 
or  modifying  the  Resumption  Act,  there  is  no  authority  in 
our  Government  that  can  restrain  its  execution.  Nor  is  it  to  be 
presumed  that  Congress  will  do  any  thing  to  impair  the  public 
faith  pledged  to  any  portion  of  its  creditors.  Popular  commo 
tion  always  stops  short  of  this.  There  is  no  tradition  of  the 


xv.]  EFFORTS  AT  REPEAL  ANSWERED.  217 

National  Government  more  sacred  than  that  which  holds  it  to  a 
rigid,  faithful  observance  of  the  public  faith.  It  is  by  this  alone 
Me  are  enabled  to  sell  our  bonds  bearing  four  per  cent,  interest 
at  par  in  coin.  The  confidence  thus  inspired  and  thus  ev 
idenced  is  the  best  property  of  the  nation— worth  more,  in  times 
of  adversity,  than  all  the  gold  and  silver  that  can  be  accu 
mulated. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

ALLEGED  DISCREPANCIES  IX  THE  TREASURER'S  REPORTS. 

As  there  has  been  something  said,  for  several  years  past, 
respecting  a  discrepancy  in  the  Treasurer's  report,  it  will 
not  be  amiss  to  make  a  special  investigation,  that  the 
merits  of  the  case  may  be  clearly  understood  by  the  read 
ers  of  this  sketch. 

On  the  12th  of  January,  1876,  Mr.  Davis,  of  West  Vir 
ginia,  offered  the  following:  "  WHEREAS.  There  appear  to  be 
material  alterations  and  discrepancies  in  the  official  finance 
reports  of  the  Treasury  Department,  as  to  the  annual  ex 
penditures,  receipts  of  the  Government,  and  public  debt, 
and  particularly  in  the  reports  of  1869  and  1872,  inclusive, 
which  discrepancies  and  changes  and  alteration?  involve 
large  amounts,  and  no  satisfactory  explanation  appears  on 
the  face  of  the  same  ;  therefore,  be  it  resolved/'  etc. 

The  above  preamble  was  laid  on  the  table,  and  the  mat 
ter  referred  to  the  Finance  Committee. 

Mr.  Davis  asserted  that  he  could  show,  from  official 
figures,  that  the  "finance  reports  of  1865-1869,  which 
agree  with  each  other,  show  that  the  net  ordinary  expendi 
tures  of  the  Government  were  nearly  one  and  a  half  mill 
ions  less  than  the  report  of  1870  shows  them  to  have  been 
that  year."  Then  follow  notes  of  discrepancies  in  pensions, 

(218) 


CHAP.  xvi.J         ALLEGED  DISCREPANCIES,  ETC.  219 

seven  millions  in  one  year.  In  naval,  $49,000.  In  the 
War  Department,  some  $4,000,000  difference;  sometimes 
one  way  and  sometimes  the  other. 

MR.  BAYARD  says:  "May  I  ask  whether  the  errors  he 
points  out  consist  of  discrepant  repetitions  of  the  same  ex 
penditures?"  Mr.  Davis  said :  "Yes,  sir." 

MR.  BAYARD. — "  I  understand  the  Senator  to  state,  that 
by  the  official  accounts  of  the  Treasury,  he  finds  that  an 
amount  is  stated  for  one  year  at  such  a  sum,  and  then 
when  the  same  account  for  the  same  year  is  to  be  recited, 
it  is  recited  differently,  and  these  are  the  discrepancies  he 
is  pointing  out." 

MR.  DAVIS. — "The  Senator  from  Delaware  is  correct. 
It  will  be  seen  by  this  statement  that  the  debt  has  in 
creased  over  seventeen  millions  between  1873  and  1874, 
instead  of  decreased,  as  claimed.  It  is  true  there  is  a  foot 
note  explaining  it,  but  it  is  my  opinion,  if  the  debt  is  actu 
ally  decreased,  the  figures  and  annual  statements  should 
show  it  without  necessity  of  explanation  of  any  kind." 

This  subject  would  not  be  introduced  here  as  matters 
implicating  Mr.  Sherman  at  all,  had  not  the  compiler  of 
this  sketch  heard,  when  in  Washington,  that  Senator 
Davis  had  made  a  similar  statement  during  Secretary 
Sherman's  incumbency  of  the  office  of  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury. 

Mr.  Boutwell  makes  this  explanation  of  one  item  which 
may  serve  as  a  specimen  of  the  rest:  "In  the  finance  re 
port  for  1869,  are  included  outstanding  warrants  to  the 
amount  of  84,000,000,  which  do  not  appear  in  the  report 
for  1870.  There  is  a  trust  fund  of  $14,000,000,  the  prin 
cipal  of  which  is  never  to  be  paid,  only  the  interest,  to  sea 
men.  This  is  sometimes  called  a  debt,  and  sometimes,  in  a 
popular  way,  is  not." 


220  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

The  explanation  of  the  above  would  seem  to  be  simply 
the  difference  in  tho  view  taken  by  different  men,  of  the 
character  of  assets  and  liabilities.  One  man  might  account 
the  annuity  payable  to  seamen  as  a  pension,  and  so  report 
it  to  the  press ;  and  another,  the  sum  of  which  it  is  the  in 
terest,  as  a  debt  against  the  Government.  No  one  has 
alleged  that  a  dollar  has  gone  into  the  Treasury  unac 
counted  for,  or  that  a  single  dollar  has  ever  been  misap 
propriated.  When  Senator  Davis  was  asked  to  name  a 
sinirle  instance  of  any  official  abuse,  in  respect  of  the 
finances,  he  had  nothing  to  allege.  The  discrepancies 
arose  from  the  different  modes  of  keeping  the  books,  by 
different  officers. 

But  as  the  national  guild  is  an  exceedingly  sensitive  or 
gan  of  the  commonwealth,  and  this  thing  is  likely  to  be 
thrown  out,  as  though  it  concealed  some  iniquity  (a  thing 
never  vet  charged),  though  it  occurred  at  a  time  and  in  a 
department  for  which  Mr.  Sherman  was  in  no  respect  re 
sponsible,  and  in  the  management  of  which  he  could  have 
had  no  more  control  than  any  other  member  of  Congress, 
it  seems  no  more  than  just  to  insert  here  the  explanations 
of  the  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Finance. 

On  the  4th  day  of  the  following  August,  the  report  of 
the  Finance  Committee  was  considered.  Mr.  Davis  claims 
that  this  is  not  a  report  made  upon  investigation  by  the 
Committee,  but  a  statement  prepared  by  the  Treasury  De 
partment  in  its  defense.  He  contends  that  his  assertion, 
that  there  were  changes,  is  sustained  by  the  report  as  pre 
sented.  To  this,  Mr.  Sherman  says: 

"Mr.  President,  this  is  the  change  about  which  we  have 
heard  so  much,  and  the  only  change,  not  a  figure  altered, 
not  a  word  omitted,  not  an  erasure  or  alteration,  but  a  new 
mode  of  stating  the  public  accounts.  This  alteration,  about 


xvi. J  ALLEGED  DISCREPANCIES,  ETC.  221 

•which  r-o  much  has  been  said,  is  nothing  but  a  new  mode 
of  stating  the  accounts,  and  that  is  shown  in  the  fullest 
and  completcst  manner  by  these  documents.  L'CL  us  go 
further.  It  is  said  that  there  arc  discrepancies  in  these 
accounts.  So  there  are.  There  have  been,  and  always 
will  be.  From  the  nature  of  things,  that  is  inevitable; 
but  why?  There  are  two  series  of  accounts,  we  are  told, 
here  by  these  public  documents,  quite  different  in  their 
scope  and  purpose.  The  one  is  kept  by  the  Register,  and 
the  other  by  the  Treasurer.  These  accounts  arc  intended 
toifee  a  check  upon  each  other.  They  are  based  upon  dif 
ferent  elements,  but  elements  which,  when  analyzed,  ena 
bled  an  acute  person  accustomed  to  accounts  .to  detect  any 
wrong  or  fraud  in  keeping  these  accounts.  Let  me  read  a 
single  paragraph,  being  a  statement  of  Mr.  Bristow,  in  a 
recent  letter,  made  a  part  of  this  report." 

MR.  EATON. — "  I  should  like  to  ask  the  Senator  a  ques 
tion,  only  I  do  not  wish  to  interrupt  him." 

MR.  SHERMAN. — "  I  do  not  object  at  all,  because  I  am 
speaking  offhand." 

MR.  EATON. — ''The  honorable  Senator  from  Ohio  is 
speaking  of  a  single  statement  of  account  made  in  one  way 
by  A,  and  in  another  way  by  B.  That  is  all  very  well ; 
but  will  the  Senator  from  Ohio  inform  the  Senate  why 
this  statement  of  change  went  back  so  many  years?" 

MR.  SHERMAN. — "That  is  precisely  what  I  am  coming 
to." 

MR.  EATON. — "That  is  precisely  what  I  want  to  hear. 
I  can  not  find  it  explained  in  the  report." 

MR.  SHERMAN. — "I  will  now  read,  first,  to  show  what 
motive  induced  the  change,  and  I  will  show  the  necessary 
difference  between  these  two  different  accounts.  I  quote 
from  this  document,  because  it  is  much  better  and  more. 


222  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

clearly  stated  than  I  could  state  it  in  words.  I  will  read, 
especially  to  my  friend  from  Connecticut,  this  statement 
of  the  origin  and  beginning  and  ending  of  this  mode  of 
changing  the  accounts,  and  why  it  went  back. 

'"Prior  to  1871  the  outstanding  public  debt  was  stated 
from  the  books  of  "issues  and  redemptions."  In  1871  this 
account  was  restated  from  1836,  from  the  "receipts  and 
expenditures."  From  the  nature  of  these  two  accounts  the 
amount  outstanding  will  not  agree  at  any  period,  although 
when  brought  within  the  same  dates,  and  to  include  the 
same  items,  there  will  be  no  difference.  To  illustrate jp-A 
subscription  is  made  to  a  loan  in  June,  but  the  bonds  are 
not  issued  until  July.  On  the  30th  of  June  the  outstand 
ing  of  this  loan  will  be  greater  by  this  amount  on  the 
"receipts  and  expenditures"  account,  than  on  the  "issues 
and  redemption"  account.' 

"  Or  to  make  this  plainer,  I  wrill  take  the  case  put  by  the 
Senator  from  West  Virginia,  in  his  prepared  speech  of  the 
pension  account,  which  I  thought  any  body  could  answer  as 
he  went  along.  When  money  is  drawn  in  favor  of  a  pen 
sion  agent  by  draft,  it  is  charged  to  the  pension  fund  in 
the  Treasurer's  Office.  As  a  matter  of  course  it  goes  into 
the  hands  of  the  pension  agent,  and  is  charged  to  pension ; 
but  that  money  may  not  be  paid  out  for  six  months,  and 
the  accounts  may  not  be  rendered  and  passed  in  the  Treas 
ury  Department  for  a  year  for  that  identical  money. 
While  the  books  of  the  Register  might  not  show  this 
money  until  after  the  accounts  were  rendered  by  the  ac 
counting  officer,  yet  the  books  of  the  Treasury  would  show 
the  money  paid  out  by  him." 

MR.  DAVIS. — "The  Senator  will  recollect  that  I  took 
five  years;  and  that  the  books  had  been  closed  five  years 
ago." 


xvi.]  ALLEGED  DISCREPANCIES,   ETC.  223 

MR.  SHERMAN. — "That  is,  between  the  first  of  one  year 
and  the  first  of  July  of  another,  there  would  necessarily  be 
a  difference  in  the  accounts  of  these  two  officers.  Between 
any  term  of  years  that  you  can  take  whatever,  there  would 
be  necessarily  a  difference.  Is  not  that  easily  explained? 
It  is  true,  if  you  go  to  work  and  compare  the  two,  and  see 
how  much  money  in  the  Treasurer's  book  is  really  in  the 
hand  of  the  pension  agent,  not  paid  out,  you  can,  by  a 
careful  analysis,  detect  whether  there  is  any  thing  wrong  in 
the  account.  That  is  the  only  way  you  can  do  it;  but 
necessarily  these  two  accounts  always  differ.  Let  me  go  a 
little  further: 

"'  During  the  year  1870  the  public  .debt  accounts -from 
1836  were  examined  with  a  view  of  bringing  these  two 
accounts  together.  The  result  of  this  examination  was  the 
adoption  of  the  present  system  of  stating  the  public  debt, 
by  which  these  two  accounts  are  made  to  harmonize,  the 
•one  being  a  check  upon  and  proving  the  correctness  of  the 
•other.  It  was  necessary  to  select  some  period  when  these 
two  accounts  came  together,  and  the  year  1836,  when  we 
had  comparatively  no  debt,  was  the  period  selected.  When 
this  examination  was  completed,  the  Register  was  directed 
to  state  his  accounts  accordingly.'  That  is  all  there  is 
about  it* 

'"In  regard  to  the  outstanding  debt  for  the  years  1869 
and  1870  being  published,  including  accrued  interest,  less 
<cash  in  the  Treasury,  the  Register  submits  the  following 
statement:' 

•"Now  here  is  wrhat  the  Register  states,  which  has  been 
quoted  by  the  Senator: 

"  'The  year  of  1869  was  the  first  of  Secretary  Bout  well's 
administration,  who  remodeled  the  debt  statement  and 
added  the  item  of  accrued  interest  to,  and  deducted  the 


224  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

cash  in  the  Treasury  from  the  outstanding  principal  of  the 
debt.  The  clerk  having  charge  of  the  division  of  receipts 
and  expenditures  in  the  Register's  Office,  whose  duty  it  was 
to  prepare  the  tables  for  the  finance  report,  followed  the 
plan  of  the  Secretary's  Office  in  making  up  the  monthly 
debt  statement,  and  reported  the  outstanding  debt  for  those 
years,  including  accrued  interest,  and  deducting  cash  in  the 
Treasury.  I  was  led  to  believe  at  the  time  that  it  was  so 
stated,  to  conform  to  suggestions  made  by  the  chief  clerk 
in  the  Secretary's  Office. 

"  *  The  statement  of  this  account  (extending  over  a  period 
of  thirty-five  years,  and  involving  receipts  into  the  Treas 
ury  of  over  $6,600,000,000,  and  an  expenditure  of  over 
$4,200,000,000),  from  two  independent  sets  of  accounts, 
proving  the  correctness  of  the  one  by  the  other,  is  in  itself 
the  highest  proof  of  the  accuracy  of  the  public  accounts, 
however  they  may  appear  in  some  instances,  at  first  view, 
to  contradict  each  other.' 

"Let  me  say,  that  besides  the  two  statements,  which  it  is 
necessary  for  the  Secretary  to  make,  he  is  by  law  required 
to  make  the  statement  which  I  hold  in  my  hand,  called  a 
statement  of  receipts  and  expenditures.  This  statement 
was  made  from  the  foundation  of  the  Government,  com 
mencing  1791,  and  shows,  in  two  tables,  the  sources  of  the 
receipts  that  come  into  the  Treasury,  and  all  the  elements 
of  payment,  what  department  of  the  Government  it  is 
charged  to,  etc.  I  suppose  every  Senator  is  familiar  with 
it.  It  is  a  statement  that  has  been  continued  year  after 
year.  It  was  made  up  until  1869.  After  that  time  Mr. 
Boutwell,  according  to  this  document,  in  publishing  the 
future  statement  of  the  state  of  the  debt,  not  to  correct  the 
back  statements,  not  to  change  the  volume  that  had  been 
printed,  or  was  in  manuscript,  but  in  stating  the  public 


XVL]  ALLEGED  DISCREPANCIES,  ETC.  225 

debt  as  it  cxrsted,  undertook  to  state  it  upon  the  plan 
that  he  thought  was  the  best,  and  which  every  body 
knows  is  the  best;  that  is,  a  statement  showing  the  in 
terest  added,  and  the  money  on  hand  deducted.  That, 
as  a  matter  of  course,  would  vary  every  year  from  the 
previous  statement.  What  harm  was  there  in  that?  On 
the  other  hand,  it  made  these  statements  harmonize.  It 
was  a  matter,  of  public  notoriety,  known  to  every  officer  in 
the  Treasury  Department.  Therefore,  in  making  up  this 
statement,  which  he  is  required  by  law  to  make  every  year, 
he  stated  the  debt,  according  to  his  mode  of  computation, 
in  1836,  and  from  that  down,  taking  the  year  1836  be 
cause  we  then  commenced  without  any  debt  in  the  books 
that  were  printed  after  1871,  so  and  so.  There  has  been 
the  bugaboo;  there  has  been  the  trouble  with  my  friend 
from  West  Virginia.  He  does  not  distinguish  between  a 
mere  mode  of  stating  a  debt  or  an  account,  or  the  result  of 
certain  figures,  and  a  change  of  the  account  itself." 
More  distinct  and  clear  still  are  the  following  words: 
"Mr.  President,  it  is  always  painful  to  me  to  hear  state 
ments  made  like  those  just  made  by  the  Senator  from  West 
Virginia,  because  he  does  not  think  about  their  effect. 
Why,  sir,  if  what  he  has  said  is  correct,  every  man  who 
has  held  the  office  of  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  from  the 
foundation  of  the  Government,  has  been  a  corrupt  man. 
He  speaks  of  changing  the  books  of  the  Treasury  Depart 
ment.  Why,  sir,  that  is  a  penitentiary  offense ;  and  yet  it 
is  charged  against  every  officer  of  the  Government  from  the 
foundation  down.  Certainly  the  Senator  does  not  mean 
that.  What  is  there  about  this  charge  ?  The  books  of  the 
Treasury  Department  have  not  been  changed  in  a  word  or 
a  figure." 


220  I  TON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

MR.  DAVIS. — "Will  the  Senator  say  the  same  thing 
about  the  official  reports  to  Congress?" 

MR.  SHERMAN. — "I  do.  No  official  report  to  Congress 
has  ever  been  changed,  and  dare  not  be.  It  is  printed 
every  year  just  as  it  is  sent  here.  This  is  what  the  Sen 
ator  means,  and  he  does  not  mean  any  more  than  this: 
that  in  1870,  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  believing  that 
the  elements  which  entered  into  the  statement  of  the  public 
debt  were  not  correct— that  is,  that  they  did  not  give  the 
information  necessary  to  show  at  a  particular  time  the 
amount  of  the  public  debt  for  a  particular  year — undertook 
to  revise  the  previous  statements  that  were  printed  in  the 
reports  of  the  Treasury  Department,  to  show  that  certain 
new  elements  ought  to  have  been  included  at  the  time  the 
statement  of  the  debt  was  made  every  year.  In  1870-'71, 
he  gave  us  a  statement  of  the  public  debt  revised,  including 
these  new  elements;  for  instance,  the  accruing  interest  and 
the  trust  funds  which  were  accounted  a  part  of  the  new 
statement,  and  not  in  the  old  one.  And  there  were  other 
elements  that  did  not  enter  into  the  previous  statements. 
He  made  a  statement  including  these  items.  I  will  state 
to  my  honorable  friend,  that  the  report  made  a  few  days 
ago,  to  which  we  gave  a  good  deal  of  attention — not  so 
much  to  satisfy  my  friend  from  West  Virginia,  as  to  satisfy 
every  body  who  wanted  to  study  the  matter,  and  every 
member  of  the  committee  was  of  the  same  opinion — gives 
the  facts  and  figures,  gives  the  debt  as  it  was  originally 
stated,  and  the  reasons  why  the  change  was  made.  It 
states  the  important  elements  that  were  omitted  in  the 
previous  statement,  and  the  reason  why  those  elements 
were  brought  into  the  subsequent  account.  Then  the  Sec 
retary  of  the  Treasury,  with  these  new  elements  made  up 
by  the  officers  of  the  Treasury  Department,  undertook  to 


xvi.  ALLK<;KI)  DISCREPANCIES^  ETC.  227 

state  that  for  1836,  although  the  debt  was  then  reported  at 
so  much,  yet  if  the  trust  fund  had  been  added  and  the  ac 
crued  interest  had  been  added,  etc.,  and  these  other  mat 
ters  had  been  brought  in  at  that  time,  as  he  proposed  to  do 
subsequently,  the  debt  would  have  been  so  and  so.  No 
figures  were  changed,  but  only  the  statements  made  in 
1870,  and  from  that  time  on,  new  elements  were  consid 
ered  as  being  proper  to  have  been  stated  that  had  been 
omitted  without  any  fault,  or  crime,  or  alteration,  or  for- 
gerjr." 

THE  UNSULLIED    PURITY    OP    OUR   NATIONAL    GUILD. 

The  writer  was,  not  long  since,  one  of  the  commissioners 
to  test  the  coinage,  and  of  course  had  access  to  all  parts  of 
the  mint  at  Philadelphia.  While  there  he  could  not  avoid 
feeling  that  he  was  in  an  atmosphere  of  purity.  Upon 
inquiry  he  learned  that  there  were  some  three  hundred 
employes,  some  of  them  on  low  wages,  yet  in  all  the  years 
since  the  establishment  of  the  mint,  not  a  dollar  has  been 
lost.  On  the  contrary,  it  has  netted  to  the  Government 
above  its  cost  and  expenses  eleven  million  dollars. 

In  the  Treasury  at  Washington  there  is  no  less  cause  for 
admiration  than  at  the  mint.  Here  are  some  three  thou 
sand  employes ;  and  bank  bills,  Government  bonds,  and  a 
vast  variety  of  stamps  are  made  from  rags  into  paper, 
printed,  stamped,  and  sent  to  their  destination  to  the  amount 
of  many  thousand  million  dollars  annually.  An  indefati 
gable  Senator  has  been  searching,  and  has  found  what  he 
called  great  discrepancies  in  reports  made  at  different  times. 
But  he  has  not  yet  ventured  to  stand  up  in  his  place,  and 
assert  that  a  single  dollar  has  been  misapplied  or  not  ac 
counted  for. 

To  show  the  sensitiveness  of  the  country  in  this  respeot. 


•22$  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP.  xvi. 

the  reader  is  reminded  that  not  many  months  ago,  $47,000 
were  stolen  in  the  Treasury  building,  and  in  twenty-four 
hours  the  news  of  it  reached  the  remotest  parts  of  the 
country,  and  there  was  instant  search,  till  the  thief  was 
detected,  and  the  treasure  recovered. 

And  now,  October  1,  1879,  all  the  money  paid  for  the 
four  per  cent,  bonds  to  the  different  agencies  has  been  col 
lected  even  more  rapidly  than  it  could  be  used,  without  the 
loss  of  a  dollar  or  the  least  commercial  disturbance. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

NEW   YORK    CUSTOM-HOUSE. 

THE  whole  country  can  scarcely  have  forgotten  the  wide 
spread  dissatisfaction  that  has  been  felt  and  expressed 
for  many  years  past  concerning  the  management  of  the 
New  York  custom-house.  These  evils  were  no  worse  under 
the  last  administration  than  they  had  been  for  a  whole  gen 
eration.  General  Arthur's  administration  was  probably  an 
improvement  upon  what  had  been  the  state  of  things  be 
fore.  He  was  himself  a  man  of  fine  qualities  and  of  good 
intentions,  and  though  he  was  an  improvement  upon  the 
past,  the  evils  were  so  deeply  rooted  that  he  could  not  re 
move  them.  A  considerable  part  of  the  commerce  of  the 
country  was  being  thrown  into  the  hands  of  dishonest  men, 
because  those  that  were  honest  would  not  bribe  men  to  do 
their  <Juty.  This  was  exerting  a  pernicious  influence  in  a 
great  many  ways/  The  example  was  exceedingly  demoral 
izing  to  the  whole  country.  What  was  known  to  be  openly 
and  shamelessly  practiced  at  the  very  center  of  commerce, 
could  not  be  restrained  with  a  very  good  grace  in  the  re 
mote  and  obscure  portions  of  the  country.  What  was  done 
in  the*  great  metropolis  in  the  custom-house  could  not  be 
wrong  in  the  land  offices,  in  the  Indian  department,  in  the 
post-offices,  and  in  the  internal  revenue  department  Its 
tendency  was  to  spread,  like  gangrene,  through  the  body 
politic.  As  a  consequence  this  influence  had  been  proving 


230  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

for  years  upon  the  vitals  of  the  Republican  party,  as  it  had 
been  before  upon  the  Democratic.  It  is  passing  strange  that 
politicians  will  not  learn  that  the  surest  way  to  stand,  and 
be  upheld  by  the  voice  and  conscience  of  the  country,  is  to 
do  right,  and  enforce  law.  If  a  law  is  a  bad  one,  the 
shortest  way  to  secure  a  repeal  is  vigorously  to  enforce  it. 
If  right,  no  party  can  stand  long  that  dare  not  enforce  it. 
There  was  certainly  nothing  fair  nor  right  in  leaving  mat 
ters  so  loose  in  New  York  that  merchants  in  the  city,  who 
had  money  and  knew  the  right  wires  to  pull,  could  get 
their  goods  landed  and  sold  before  those  at  a  distance  could 
get  theirs  landed.  But  the  combinations  and  ramifications 
of  the  custom-house  ring,  in  New  York,  were  so  fortified 
on  all  hands,  and  so  reticulated  with  the  politics  of  the 
country,  as  to  require  unwonted  courage  to  attack  it. 

The  State  of  New  York  being  the  most  populous  in  the 
Union,  would  naturally  exert  a  greater  political  influence 
than  any  other.  The  city  being  the  largest  on  the  conti 
nent,  and  the  commercial  metropolis  of  the  whole  country, 
would,  on  that  account,  be  especially  powerful.  The  custom 
house  in  that  city  being  the  place  where  the  larger  part  of 
dutiable  goods  are  entered  and  customs  paid,  if  used  for 
the  purpose,  might  be  the  very  key  to  political  power,  and 
control  the  politics  of  the  nation.  Such  a  Goliath  as  this 
it  would  require  unusul  courage  to  attack.  What  made  it 
worse  was  that  it  was  in  the  hands  of  political  friends. 
The  Republican  party  might  well  have  said,  and  executive 
officers  might  have  said,  "Had  it  been  an  enemy  that  had 
done  this  thing  then  I  could  have  borne  it;  but  it  was 
mine  own  familiar  friend."  It  requires  more  courage  to 
attack  a  friend  than  it  does  to  assail  an  enemy.  But  then, 
in  the  hands  of  friends,  such  a  power,  if  used  amiss,  is  cal 
culated  to  do  vastly  greater  harm  than  would  otherwise  be 


xvn.]  NEW  YORK  CUSTOM-HOUSE.  231 

possible.  If  such  acts  were  tolerated  in  the  Republican 
party,  how  would  that  party  be  able  to  suppress  the  fraud 
ulent  voting  that  is  so  much  complained  of?  Leading 
Democrats  would  say,  and  say  it  plausibly,  too,  if  the  Re 
publicans  undertake  to  retain  their  power  in  the  State  and 
country  by  a  corrupt  use  of  the  custom-house,  who  will 
"throw  the  first  stone"  at  us  if  we  undertake  to  recover 
it  by  a  corrupt  use  of  the  ballot-box  ?  In  this  way,  that 
festering  sore  in  the  custom-house  of  New  York  was  set 
ting  an  example  and  stimulating  deeds  of  corruption,  and 
more  than  any  thing  else  likely  to  bring  about  its  own 
overthrow.  Whereas,  had  the  Republican  party  held 
itself  above  reproach,  by  the  rigid  enforcement  of  law,  and 
of  the  regulations  of  commerce,  and  in  defense  of  the 
rights  of  citizens,  it  would  have  stood  fairer  before  the 
world,  and  higher  in  the  confidence  of  the  nation.  Its 
power  would  have  had  a  more  permanent  basis  and  a 
stronger  hold  upon  the  affections  of  the  people.  Mr. 
Sherman's  policy  from  beginning  to  end,  has  been  to  en 
force  law  and  exact  obedience  to  law.  But  in  the  New 
York  affair  it  required  a  tremendous  effort.  The  present 
administration,  in  assailing  that  festering  sore,  required 
more  moral  courage,  and  of  a  higher  order,  than  it  did  to 
put  down  the  rebellion.  It  was  easy  to  fight  after  the  at 
tack  on  Foirt  Sumter,  but  not  so  easy  to  assail  leading  Re 
publicans  in  New  York  City. 

President  Hayes  and  Secretary  Sherman  were  just  the 
men  to  assail  that  powerful  combination.  Both  of  them 
are  men  who  "  would  rather  be  right  than  be  President," 
and,  therefore,  in  that  emergency  of  the  country — for  such 
it  really  was — the  right  men  were  in  the  right  place.  The 
changing  of  officers  in  the  custom-house,  may  seem  like  a 
small  matter,  one  that  could  not  call  for  a  great  amount  of 


232  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

courage.  But  when  we  take  into  account  all  the  circum 
stances  just  enumerated,  and  the  fact  that  it  had  continued 
so  long  unsuppressed,  and  only  checked,  would  indicate 
that  to  assail  this  evil  would  require  a  man  of  uncommon 
nerve.  But  the  importance  of  doing  so,  and  the  greatness 
of  the  victory  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  and  the 
distinguished  .service  he  has  rendered,  will  appear  from  a 
review  of  Mr.  Sherman's  statement  of  the  evidence  of  cor 
ruption.  Resumption  of  specie  payments,  the  national 
bank  system,  the  funding  of  the  public  debt  at  so  low  in 
terest  by  which  so  many  millions  of  dollars  are  saved  to  the 
industry  of  the  nation,  are  wonderful  achievements;  but  it 
is  exceedingly  doubtful  whether  the  attack  upon  the  New 
York  custom-house,  and  its  success,  is  not  the  greatest  and 
best  of  all.  It  is  said  by  detractors  that  the  national  bank 
grew  out  of  the  necessities  of  war,  that  resumption  and  re 
funding  were  the  results  of  remarkable  coincidences,  not  re 
membering  how  important  it  was  to  have  a  man  on  hand 
that  knew  how  to  take  advantage  of  these  coincidences. 
But  as  to  the  New  York  custom-house  there  were  no  for 
tunate  coincidences  to  take  advantage  of.  It  was  all  up-hill 
work.  It  is  doubtful  if  the  President,  unflinching  as  he 
is,  could  have  done  it  alone,  or  found  another  than  Secre 
tary  Sherman  who  would  have  succeeded  in  conjunction 
with  him. 

But  that  the  reader  may  be  posted  upon  the  merits  of 
this  conflict  let  him  review  the  facts  of  the  case.  The  Presi 
dent  said  in  his  message,  January  31,  1879  :  "The  custom- 
house  should  be  a  business  office.  It  should  be  conducted 
upon  business  principles.  General  James,  the  post-master 
of  New  York  City,  writing  on  this  subject,  says:  'The 
post-office  is  a  business  institution,  and  should  be  run  as 
such.  It  is  my  deliberate  judgment  that  I,  and  my  sub- 


xvii.]  NEW  YORK  CUSTOM-HOUSE.  233 

ordinates,  can  do  more  for  the  party  of  our  choice,  by  giv 
ing  the  people  of  this  city  a  good  and  efficient  postal 
service,  than  by  controlling,  primaries  or  dictating  nomina 
tions.'  The  New  York  custom-house  should  be  placed  on 
the  same  footing  with  the  New  York  post-office.  But 
under  the  suspended  officers"  (Arthur  and  Cornell)  "the 
custom-house  would  be  one  of  the  principal  political 
agencies  in  the  State  of  New  York." 

The  history  of  this  affair,  as  far  as  respects  the  effort  to 
change  the  officers,  was  about  as  follows:  At  the  beginning 
of  the  session  of  Congress  of  1877-'8,  the  President  exer 
cised  the  appointing  power  to  remove  the  old  incumbents 
and  appoint  new  ones.  Not  wishing  to  harm  any  one  or 
cause  ill  feelings,  he  did  this  as  a  matter  of  course,  not 
ostensibly  as  a  measure  of  reform,  but  without  giving  rea 
sons.  This  appointment  was  rejected  by  his  political  friends 
without  assigning  a  reason,  but  it  was  well  understood  that 
the  reason  was,  a  determination  to  hold  the  custom-house 
as  a  political  engine  to  influence  elections.  This  was  a 
Bull  Run  defeat  of  the  administration.  But  the  war  was 
not  over.  The  Jay  Commission  was  then  sent  to  investi 
gate  the  charges  that  wore  afloat  respecting  the  abuses  in 
the  custom-house,  and  report,  preparatory  to  action  in 
earnest  and  removal  for  cause.  At  this  time  a  second  sus 
pension  had  taken  place,  and  it  was  yet  to  be  tried  before 
the  Senate,  whether  the  appointment  of  a  successor  should 
be  approved. 

The  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  had  communicated  to  Mr. 
Arthur  the  causes  of  removal,  which  are  stated  substan 
tially  thus  by  Mr.  Sherman:  That  gross  abuses  had  con 
tinued  and  increased  during  Mr.  Arthur's  administration ; 
that  persons  were  paid  who  rendered  little  or  no  service ; 
office  expense  was  increased  and  revenue  diminished; 


20 


234  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [( -HAP, 

bribes  were  received  by  subordinates ;  want  of  co-operation 
with  efforts  to  correct  these  abuses.  Still,  Mr.  Arthur  made 
serious  complaints  of  the  injustice  of  his  removal.  Then 
Mr.  Sherman  offered  inducements  for  him  to  resign,  but  he 
declined,  lest  it  might  seem  to  be  a  confession  of  guilt. 

After  the  rejection  of  the  nominations,  Mr.  Arthur  con 
tinuing  in  office,  every  effort  was  made  by  the  Depart 
ment  to  secure  his  co-operation  in  needed  reforms,  but 
without  success. 

That  the  reader  may  have  a  full  view  of  the  evils  to  be 
cured  in  New  York,  as  well  as  the  importance  of  a  remedy, 
some  of  the  evidences  are  here  recited  as  they  were  re 
ported  to  the  Department. 

As  to  gratuities  in  the  nature  of  bribes:  "The  evi 
dence  taken  shows  that  most  of  the  witnesses  who  were 
interrogated  on  this  point,  testified  that  gratuities  were 
constantly  received.  It  was  in  testimony  with  regard  to 
inspectors,  that  they  were  anxious  to  be  sent  to  discharge 
steamers,  rather  than  sailing  vessels,  because  they  were 
paid  by  the  owners  of  the  steamships  a  gratuity  of  from 
ten  to  fifty  dollars,  technically  called  'house  money/  The 
agent  of  one  of  these  lines  stated  that  thirty  dollars  was 
paid  to  each  inspector,  discharging  their  steamers,  as  'house 
money.'  The  agent  of  another  testified  that  perquisites 
were  constantly  paid  to  inspectors  for  discharging  vessels ; 
that  the  shorter  the  time  the  vessel  Avas  to  be  in  port,  the 
larger  the  amount  paid  ;  that  the  inspectors  received  a 
gratuity  for  permitting  the  vessel  to  discharge  before  the 
custom-hou>e  permit  reached  the  ship;  that  if  these  fees 
were  not  paid,  the  inspector  had  it  in  his  power  to  delay 
the  vessel  in  many  ways;  and  that  it  was  merely  a  question 
between  the  owner  and  the  inspector  as  to  how  much  it  was 
worth  to  the  former  to  obtain  these  facilities — that  is, 


NEW  YORK.  CUSTOM-HOUSE.  255 

whether  it  was  cheaper  to  pay  the  inspector  a  gratuity  for 
obtaining  these  facilities,  than  to  have  him  stand  upon  the 
strict  letter  of  the  law,  and  throw  obstructions  in  his  way. 
It  was  also  in  testimony  that  other  irregular  fees  were 
constantly  received  by  inspectors,  called  'hatchets'  and 
'bones' — 'hatchets'  being  fees  received  from  merchants 
for  the  privilege  of  holding  their  goods  on  the  dock,  in 
stead  of  going  into  the  general  order  store  at  once ;  and 
'bones'  being  fees  paid  by  passengers  for  favors  extended 
to  them  at  the  examination  of  their  baggage.  With  regard 
to  weighers,  it  was  testified  that  there  was  a  complete  list 
of  irregular  fees  adopted  by  all  of  them,  to  be  exacted  of 
merchants  for  supplying  copies  of  weights.  These  fees 
ranged  from  two  cents  to  thirty  cents  a  ton  for  weighing 
iron  and  other  metals,  and  a  schedule  upon  which  the 
foreman  of  the  weighers  was  accustomed  to  make  the  de 
mand,  shews  in  detail  the  amount  to  be  collected  upon  each 
barrel,  package  and  bag,  upon  rice,  sugar,  and  many  other 
articles.  It  was  also  distinctly  testified  that  the  collector's 
entry  clerks  received  fifteen  cents  for  each  entry,  and  the 
naval  officer's  clerks  ten  cents  for  each  entry,  from  brokers 
and  merchants,  for  facilities  in  passing  the  entries.  The 
receipt  of  these  irregular  fees  by  entry,  withdrawal,  export 
entry  and  refund  clerks,  was  afterward  fully  shown  from 
the  books  of  the  custom-house  brokers. 

"  In  addition  to  all  this,  it  is  clear  from  letters  addressed 
to  the  Jay  Commission  by  the  collector,  naval  officer  and 
surveyor,  in  regard  to  this  very  question,  that  the  practice 
of  taking  illegal  fees  was  well  known." — Secretary  Sher 
man's  Letter  to  the  President,  January  31,  1879. 

The  following  is  quoted,  as  one  out  of  many  instances, 
from  the  same  letter: 

"  In  a  case  which  has  come  to  light  since  the  retirement 


236  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN".  [CHAP. 

of  Mr.  Arthur,  it  has  been  shown  that  goods  upon  which  the 
duties  amounted  to  $120,000,  were  delivered  to  the  parties 
without  the  payment  of  any  duties  to  the  Government,  and 
in  a  suit  to  recover  these  duties,  it  is  claimed  by  the  im 
porters,  that  the  unlawful  delivery  was  due  to  negligence, 
or  something  worse,  on  the  part  of  the  custom-house  offi 
cers  under  the  charge  of  Mr.  Arthur." 

Now  the  question  comes  with  pertinency,  What  was  the 
reward  that  induced  the  officers  to  omit  collecting  duties 
of  the  same  parties,  to  such  an  amount?  It  could  not  have 
been  permitted  without  a  consideration  ;  and  where  there 
was  so  much  bribery,  there  very  likely  might  have  been 
more.  It  is  easier  to  believe  so  than  that  the  officers  would 
permit  such  an  amount  of  goods  to  pass  unnoticed. 

Now  if  such  corruption  wrere  allowed  to  pass  unrebuked 
and  unchecked  in  the  custom-house  of  New  York,  it  must 
every-where.  If  permitted  in  the  revenue  department,  it 
Avill  be  practiced  in  all  others.  If  the  executive  officers 
are  baffled  in  putting  down  corruption  there,  the  whole 
country  is  diseased  at  its  very  heart.  Then  what  were  the 
value  of  all  that  had  been  so  dearly  bought  in  the  war  for 
the  Union,  the  four  thousand  millions  of  treasure,  the  half 
million  lives,  the  sacrifice  of  such  men  as  Lincoln,  Stan  ton, 
McPherson,  and  others,  who  died  to  save  the  nation? 
What  were  the  value  of  resumption,  or  refunding,  or  silver, 
or  gold,  if  all  were  to  become  one  vast,  seething  pool  of 
corruption?  If  that  were  to  be  tolerated,  better  let  the 
Republic  perish  at  once.  The  sooner  it  were  to  come  to 
an  end,  the  less  harm  it  would  be  able  to  do.  This  vic 
tory  of  the  present  administration  must,  therefore,  be 
achieved,  or  the  avails  of  all  the  others  must  become 
worthless.  The  victory  over  the  New  York  custom-house 
was  the  crowning  one  of  a  long  series,  and  essential  to  the 


NEW   YORK  CUSTOM-HOUSE.  237 

value  of  all  the  rest;  and,  as  lias  already  been  shown,  re 
quired  a  sterner  kind  of  courage,  and  a  more  resolute  will, 
than  any  of  the  rest.  There  was  no  excitement  of  a  kittle- 
field,  no  stimulus  of  martial  glory,  nothing  but  resolute 
wills.  Such  were  those  of  President  Hayes  and  Secretary 
Sherman.  By  their  resolution  the  country  has  been  saved 
again.  Let  the  heroes  be  duly  honored.  In  a  pecuniary 
sense,  all  the  people  of  this  country,  every  man,  woman 
and  child,  have  been  benefited ;  for  all  the  extra  cost  laid 
out  in  bribes,  was  assessed,  of  course,  by  the  merchants 
upon  their  goods,  and  the  people  had  it  to  pay.  Revenues 
stolen  from  the  Government,  of  course,  required  increased 
levies  therefor  in  future.  So  that  the  fourteen  millions 
per  annum  that  is  saved  in  the  shape  of  interest,  in  conse 
quence  of  refunding  the  debt,  is  only  a  part  of  what  has 
been  saved  to  the  people  by  the  efforts,  the  courage,  and 
skill  of  the  present  Minister  of  Finance,  and  the  President 
that  has  sustained  him.  In  all  the  future  honors  bestowed 
upon  him,  let  this  be  put  down  among  the  chief. 

One  item  in  the  money  value  of  this  victory  is,  the  im 
mensely  increased  revenues  from  import  duties,  as  well  as 
a  great  diminution  in  the  expense  of  collection. 

A  fitting  close  to  this  as  showing  the  unflinching  ad 
herence  of  the  Secretary  to  what  he  deems  right  and  best, 
is  the  following  incident  which  came  accidentally  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  writer,  and  shows  how  persistently  Secre 
tary  Sherman  has  watched  over  and  guarded  the  Treasury. 

An  acquaintance  from  Mansfield  was  in  his  office  at 
Washington,  when  some  one  came  in  with  a  claim  of  a 
million  dollars  or  more,  saying  it  had  been  regularly  passed 
upon  by  the  proper  officers,  and  it  only  needed  his  signa 
ture  to  order  its  payment.  Said  the  Secretary:  "It  is  an 
illegal  claim,  and  I  can  not  pay  it."  "But  it  has  been 


233  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP.  xvn. 

regularly  allowed,  and  must  be  paid."  "I  know  the  law," 
said  Mr.  Sherman;  "I  helped  make  it,  and  I  know  what 
it  means,  and  I  shall  not  pay  it."  "  Perhaps  the  President 
will  order  it  paid."  "It  may  be.  Try  him,  and  see." 
The  applicant  consulted  the  President,  who  said,  "That 
is  the  Secretary's  business,  not  mine."  After  the  man 
left,  the  Secretary  said,  "  The  President  will  not  order  it 
paid.  If  he  does,  I  am  on  my  way  to  Mansfield  in  less 
than  a  week,  for  I  never  will  pay  it." 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE    PORTLAND   SPEECH  —  FINANCIAL    CONDITION   IN    1873. 

IN  the  fall  of  1873  there  happened  a  financial  panic,  out  of 
which  most  of  the  economic  questions  upon  which  we  are  now  di 
vided  naturally  sprung.  \Ve  must  understand  the  actual  con 
dition  of  things  when  this  occurred,  in  order  to  discuss  with  in 
telligence  the  measures  that  have  been  proposed  and  executed, 
and  the  questions  that  still  remain  open  for  decision.  Our  money 
then  was  paper  money,  irredeemable  in  coin,  and  worth  about 
eighty-seven  cents  on  the  dollar.  The  amount  outstanding  was 
larger  than  ever  before.  Sometimes  this  has  been  disputed  by 
counting  as  money,  at  the  close  of  the  war,  all  the  compound- 
interest  notes  and  seven-thirty  treasury  notes.  These  were  no 
more  current  money  than  the  six  per  cent,  bonds  into  which  they 
were  converted.  Both  bore  interest,  and  were  always  above  par 
in  paper  money,  and  were  held  as  investments,  not  as  currency. 
The  amount  of  paper  money  outstanding,  excluding  all  interest- 
bearing  notes,  June  30,  1865,  was  §747,223,895.76.  The  amount 
on  the  30th  of  June,  1873,  just  before  the  panic,  was  $749,440,863.94, 
while  on  the  30th  of  June,  1874,  after  the  panic,  it  was  $780,948,- 
081.17. 

Again,  the  rate  of  interest  was  higher  in  1873  than  before  or 
since.  Before  the  panic  the  body  of  the  Government  debt  bore 
interest  at  6  per  cent,  in  gold ;  corporations,  in  fair  credit,  paid  8 
to  10  percent.;  and  individuals — especially  in  the  West — mort 
gaged  their  farms  at  from  10  to  12  per  cent.  The  current  rate  of 
interest  may  be  said  to  have  been  10  per  cent. 

The  utmost  recklessness  in  contracting  debts  was  then  universal, 

(28D) 


240  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

not  only  by  individuals,  but  by  cities,  counties,  towns,  and  all 
kinds  of  private  corporations.  It  was  an  era  of  wild  and  reck 
less  waste  and  improvidence. 

In  those  speculative  times  the  tonnage  of  American  vessels  in 
foreign  trade  dwindled  from  2,379,396  in  I860,  to  1,378,533  tons 
in  1873.  Wherever  we  were  brought  in  competition  with  countries 
doing  business  upon  a  specie  basis,  we  were  driven  from  compe 
tition,  either  on  the  ocean  or  in  workshops. 

Railroads  were  built  where  they  were  not  needed,  in  advance 
of  settlements ;  furnaces  were  put  up  in  excess  of  all  possible 
permanent  demand,  and  over-production  and  over-trading  oc 
curred  in  all  branches  of  business. 

The  balance  of  trade  with  foreign  countries  had  been  for  a  se 
ries  of  years  steadily  against  us.  From  1863  to  1873  the  excess 
of  imports  over  exports  was.  $1,086,440,587,  and  from  1869  to  1873 
$554,052,607. 

I  am  not  able  to  give  you  the  amount  of  private  and  corporate 
indebtedness  contracted  in  foreign  countries  during  these  years  of 
reckless  speculation,  but  it  was  probably  equal  to  or 'in  excess  of 
the  balance  of  trade  against  us.  We  then  enjoyed  the  prosperity 
of  a  profligate  while  wasting  his  inheritance,  or  the  happiness  of 
a  drunkard  while  on  a  spree. 

The  panic  of  1873  called  a  halt,  and,  as  by  a  stroke,  paralyzed 
all  domestic  industry,  and  bankruptcy  and  ruin  spread  from  cor 
porations  to  individuals,  and  property  was  unsalable  except  at 
prices  far  below  its  value. 

It  is  hardly  worth  while  for  us  to  enter  into  the  discussion  of 
the  causes  of  this  calamity.  Honest  men  would  differ  about  it. 
Some  attribute  it  to  the  waste  of  the  war,  some  to  the  over-pro 
duction  that  followed  the  waste  of  the  war;  some  to  irredeemable 
paper  money.  But  whatever  may  have  been  the  cause,  the  ca 
lamity  was  admitted  by  all  to  be  wide-reaching  and  long-con 
tinued.  It  affected  foreign  nations  much  more  severely  than  our 
own.  Every  nation  in  Europe  suffered  as  much  or  more  than  the 
United  States.  The  industries  of  Great  Britain  were  paralyzed. 
Our  earlier  recovery  from  this  stagnation  is  due  to  our  vast  ter 
ritory  and  undeveloped  resources,  and  the  natural  energy  of  a 
young  and  vigorous  nation. 


xviil.]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  241 

THE   RESUMPTION  ACT. 

When  Congress  met  in  December,  1873,  it  undertook  to  find  a 
remedy  for  these  evils,  and  for  a  year  we  had  discussions  in  Con 
gress,  in  the  press,  and  among  the  people,  as  to  how  best  to  relieve 
onr  distresses,  and  restore  our  industries  to  solid  foundation.  In 
the  course  of  this  discussion  the  people  naturally  divided.  On  the 
one  hand,  it  was  insisted  that  the  true  remedy  was  to  inflate  the 
currency  by  a  large  increase  of  paper  money,  and,  with  that  view, 
$26,000,000  in  United  States  notes  were  thrown  upon  the  market. 
On  the  other  hand,  it  was  insisted  that  the  only  hope  for  relief  was 
to  return  to  a  specie  basis,  and  to  advance  all  forms  of  currency  to 
that  standard. 

In  January,  1875,  and  during  the  second  session  of  Congress, 
eighteen  months  after  the  panic,  the  measure  known  as  the  Re 
sumption  Act  was  adopted  by  a  majority  of  both  branches,  and 
approved  by  the  President.  This  was  a  Republican  measure;  for, 
though  many  Democrats  favored  resumption,  yet  party  discipline, 
and  the  hope  of  party  advantage,  induced  every  one  of  them  to 
vote  against  the  Resumption  Act.  This  measure  was  a  very  sim 
ple  one,  containing  but  two  propositions — one  was  that  silver  coin 
should  be  gradually  issued  for  the  redemption  of  fractional  cur 
rency,  and  the  other  was  that  on  Jannary  1,  1879,  the  National 
Treasury  should  redeem,  in  coin,  any  United  States  notes  that  were 
presented.  This  act  was  not  to  take  effect,  in  its  material  pro 
vision,  until  four  years  from  the  date  of  its  passage.  Steps  were 
taken  by  Secretary  Bristow  and  your  distinguished  townsman,  Sec 
retary  Morrill,  for  the  gradual  replacement  of  fractional  currency 
by  silver  coin;  but,  until  the  spring  of  1877,  no  material  prepara 
tion  was  or  could  well  have  been  made  for  the  redemption  of 
United  States  notes,  which  continued  to  be  depreciated,  being 
worth  only  89  to  94  cents  in  coin,  A  wide-spread  feeling  pre 
vailed  that  resumption  was  impossible,  that  it  would  not  bring 
better  times,  and  the  country  continued  to  suffer  the  tortures  of  the 
panic  of  1873. 

During  the  whole  of  1876  and  1877  the  Resumption  Act  was 
made  the  subject  of  denunciation.  The  absurd  notion  was  put 
forward  that  it  was  the  cause  of  the  hard  times,  though  no  mate 
rial  notion  had  been  taken  under  it,  and  the  hard  times  came 
21 


242  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

eighteen  months  hefore  the  Resumption  Act  passed.  All  sorts  of 
prophecies  were  made  of  its  failure.  We  were  told  that  the  Re 
sumption  Act  wa"s  a  sham;  that  it  was  a  hinderance  to  resumption  ; 
that  the  attempt  to  accumulate  coin  would  put  up  its  price;  that 
it  would  be  worth  $50,000  to  be  on  the  right  of  the  line  on  the  day 
of  resumption;  that  resumption  was  impossible;  that  it  would 
prostrate  industry;  that  it  would  stop  the  sale  of  bonds;  that  it 
would  raise  the  rate  of  interest  for  the  benefit  of  the  bond-holders, 
shylocks,  and  capitalists. 

The  Democratic  party,  in  its  platform  adopted  in  St.  Louis  in 

1876,  while   pretending  to  be  for  resumption,  denounced   the  Re 
publican  party  because  it  had  made  no  preparation  for  it,  but,  in 
stead,  had  obstructed  it  by  wasting  our  resources  and  exhausting 
all  surplus  income,  and  because,  while  annually  professing  to  in 
tend  a  speedy  return  to  specie  payments,  it  had  annutilly  enacted 
fresh  hinderances  thereto.     It  denounced  the  Resumption  Act  of 
1875  as  such  a  hinderance,  and  demanded  its  repeal. 

Mr.  Ewing,  of  Ohio,  and  Mr.  Voorhees,  of  Indiana,  with  others, 
made  a  minority  report,  in  which  they  declared  that  the  law  for 
the  resumption  of  specie  payments  on  the  1st  of  January,  1879, 
having  been  enacted  by  the  Republican  party  without  deliberation 
in  Congress  or  discussion  before  the  people,  and,  being  so  inade 
quate  to  secure  its  object,  was  highly  injurious  to  the  business  of 
the  country,  and  ought  to  be  forthwith  repealed. 

Mr.  Tilden,  in  his  letter  of  acceptance,  indorsed  this  doctrine, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  declared  himself  for  a  speedy  return  to 
specie  payments,  saying:  "The  Government  ought  not  to  spec 
ulate  on  its  own  dishonor  in  order  to  save  interest  on  its  broken 
promises,  which  it  still  compels  private  dealers  to  accept  at  a 
fictitious  par." 

I  will  read  some  of  the  prophecies  made  by  very  distinguished 
gentlemen  in  regard  to  the  Resumption  Act. 

General  Ewing,  in  the  House  of  Representatives,  November  22, 

1877,  said  : 

"  If  we  were  wholly  out  of  debt  to  Europe,  if  our  foreign  com 
merce  floated  under  our  own  flag,  if  there  were  no  system  of  ab 
senteeism  among  our  wealthy  classes,  expending  their  wealth 
abroad,  resumption  in  gold,  or  even  gold  and  silver,  would  be 


xvni.]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  243 

impossible  on  our  present  volume  of  paper  currency  for  many 
years  to  come.  .  .  .  The  national  banks,  ihe  importers,  the 
gold  rings  in  New  York,  the  desperadoes  of  Wall  Street,  the  money 
kings  of  Europe,  to  whom  we  are  financially  enslaved,  they  will 
present  the  greenbacks  for  redemption  and  destruction  as  fast  as 
the  gold  can  be  paid  over  the  counters  of  the  Treasury." 

Senator  Coke,  in  the  United  States  Senate,  May  14,  1878,  said: 

"  It  is  better,  Mr.  President,  that  we  bide  our  time,  and  turn 
back  from  the  frightful  abyss  of  ruin  which  yawns  across  the  path 
way  to  resumption.  The  experiment  must  end  in  failure,  and 
must  engulf  the  country  in  a  lower  deep  of  misery  than  it  has  yet 
fathomed.  The  bulk  of  the  State,  private,  and  savings  banks,  with 
their  vast  sum  of  the  people's  deposits,  must  go  by  the  board  by 
reason  of  the  insufficiency  of  their  reserves,  and  many  of  the  na 
tional  banks  must  fall  from  the  same  cause.  In  this  general  crash 
the  whole  system,  from  the  Treasury  down,  must  succumb.  It  is 
simply  a  question  of  time,  for  this  result  must  occur,  and  in  my 
judgment  the  time  will  be  very  short  after  the  1st  day  of  January 
next." 

On  the  15th  of  November,  1877,  my  old  friend,  Judge  Kelley, 
of  Pennsylvania,  in  the  House  of  Representatives,  said : 

.  .  .  "But,  gentlemen,  the  worst  has  not  yet  come  if  this  act 
is  to  be  maintained.  And  I  tell  you — and  you  may  book  it  to  jeer 
and  scoff  at  me  fifteen  months  hence  if  it  prove  not  to  be  a  true 
prediction — the  suffering  we  have  endured  during  the  three  years 
this  law  has  been  in  existence,  is  like  the  chill  which  embellishes 
while  it  blasts  with  feathered  frosts  the  leaves  and  flowers  of  the 
tropical  plants  that  surround  the  homes  of  our  extreme  southern 
States,  compared  with  the  arctic  cold  that  builds  up  the  mount 
ainous  iceberg,  which  chills  the  summer  atmosphere  of  our  coast 
as  it  passes  near  our  shores." 

I  have  no  desire  to  jeer  OT  scoff  at  a  gentleman  whom  I  sincerely 
respect,  although  near  two  years  ago  he  gave  us  authority  to  do  so, 
if  he  proved  to  be  a  false  prophet. 

Mr.  Muldrow  said,  in  the  House  of  Representatives,  November 
16,  1877  : 

"  The  act  gives  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  the  power  to  sell 
bonds,  so  as  to  obtain  gold  to  redeem  the  greenbacks  and  frac- 


244  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

tional  currency;  but  there  is  no  such  provision  in  regard  to  the 
national  bank  issues.  The  practical  working  of  the  law  will  be 
the  absorption  and  retirement  of  the  greenbacks  and  the  issuance 
in  their  stead  of  irredeemable  national  bank  notes.  No  man  with 
any  financial  sagacity  can  believe  that  the  national  banks  will  be 
able  to  redeem  their  circulating  currency  with  coin  in  January, 
1879." 

Mr.  Buckner,  chairman  of  the  Committee  of  Banking  and  Cur 
rency,  said  on  the  16th  of  November,  1877: 

"  I  have  not  been  able  to  find  one  man,  learned  or  unlearned, 
capitalist  or  laborer,  merchant  or  farmer,  who  believes  resumption 
possible  or  practicable.  Perhaps  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  is 
an  exception." 

I  might  quote  for  days  the  warnings  and  evil  prophecies  of  our 
Democratic  and  Greenback  friends,  but  they  have  been  so  recently 
made  that  it  is  scarcely  necessary.  On  the  other  hand,  the  sup 
porters  of  this  measure  insisted  that  resumption  was  not  only  pos 
sible,  but  easy;  that  the  accumulation  of  coin  would  lower  its 
price,  improve  the  public  credit,  increase  the  sale  of  four  per  cent, 
bonds;  and  that  when  the  funds  should  be  sufficient  to  inspire 
confidence  in  the  ability  to  resume,  resumption  would  be  a  tranquil 
and  easy  passage,  the  sure  forerunner  of  hopeful  prosperity.  They 
also  believed  that  it  would  lessen  the  burden  of  the  public  debt, 
and  lower  the  rate  of  interest  not  only  to  the  public,  but  to  private 
individuals. 

SUCCESS   OF   RESUMPTION. 

Let  us  now  examine  which  of  these  opposing  opinions  has  been 
proved  to  be  true  by  the  test  of  experience. 

The  success  of  resumption  depended  entirely  upon  the  ability 
of  the  United  States,  by  the  time  fixed,  to  accumulate  in  the  Treas 
ury  an  amount  of  coin  sufficient  to  meet  any  demands  likely  to  be 
made  upon  it.  This  coin  could  only  be  obtained  by  surplus  rev 
enue,  or  by  the  sale  of  United  States  bonds,  full  authority  for 
which  was  given  by  the  resumption  act.  In  April,  1877,  it  was 
announced  by  the  administration  that  from  the  1st  of  May  the 
Treasury  Department  would  accumulate  coin  at  the  rate  of 
So, 000,000  a  month,  and  accordingly  that  sum  was  set  aside  from 
the  sale  of  44  per  cent,  bonds,  up  to  the  1st  of  July. 


xviii.]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  245 

The  very  announcement  of  the  purpose  to  resume,  with  a  defin 
ite  plan  of  resumption,  at  once  had  a  reviving  effect  upon  the 
public  credit,  increasing  the  sale  of  4i  per  cent,  bonds.  This  in 
duced  the  Treasury  Department,  on  the  23d  day  of  May,  1877,  to 
withdraw  the  4£  per  cent,  bonds,  and  on  the  9th  of  June,  1877,  to 
place  the  4  per  cents  upon  the  market  to  be  sold  at  par  in  coin, 
both  for  refunding  and  resumption  purposes.  This  was  a  critical 
experiment,  the  expediency  of  which  was  gravely  doubted  by  many 
friends  of  resumption,  but  it  proved  a  perfect  success.  This  course 
was  pursued  until  November,  the  price  of  coin  constantly  declining 
and  confidence  steadily  improving,  when  Congress  met,  and  a  bill 
speedily  passed  the  House  of  Representatives  to  repeal  the  resump 
tion  act.  This  and  other  proposed  measures  affected  seriously  the 
public  credit,  and  stopped  the  sale  of  bonds  as  with  a  clamp.  An 
examination  of  financial  problems  by  the  committees  of  both 
Houses  and  the  debates  in  Congress  caused  the  Senate  to  refuse  to 
pass  the  bill  for  the  repeal  of  the  resumption  act,  and  finally  pre 
vented  the  passage  of  any  bill  that  would  cripple  that  act,  and  left 
the  Executive  authority  to  pursue  its  duty  as  prescribed  therein. 

On  April  11,  1878,  the  Department  was  again  able  to  resume  its 
policy  of  purchasing  coin  by  the  sale  of  4J  per  cent,  bonds,  and 
shortly  afterwards  to  commence  the  sale  of  4  per  cents  for  refund 
ing  purposes,  and  this  policy  was  steadily  pursued  to  the  end. 
During  the  process,  coin  constantly  declined  and  the  sale  of  4  per 
cent,  bonds  steadily  increased.  In  1878  we  sold  $50,000,000  4£  per 
cent,  bonds  at  a  premium  of  H  per  cent.,  and  $128,685,450  4  per 
cent,  bonds  at  par.  Ninety  million  dollars  of  the  proceeds  of  bonds 
sold  in  1877  and  1878  were  held  in  coin  as  a  part  of  the  resumption 
fund,  and  the  balance  was  applied  to  the  payment  of  6  per  cent, 
five-twenty  bonds.  At  the  end  of  the  year  1878,  and  before  Con 
gress  had  convened,  Ave  had  thus  accumulated,  including  surplus 
revenue,  a  coin  reserve  of  $138,000,000.  Resumption  had  practi 
cally  come  one  month  before  the  day  fixed  by  law,  as  quietly  and 
tranquilly  as  a  vessel  would  float  from  the  river  into  the  ocean. 
Our  notes  were  no  longer  at  a  discount.  They  were  at  par  with 
coin.  The  game  money  was  paid  to  the  laborer,  the  farmer,  and 
the  bond-holder,  and  all  as  good  as  the  best  coin  issued  from  the 
mint.  On  the  1st  day  of  January,  and  on  every  day  since,  both 


246  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.    ^  [CHAP. 

gold  and  silver  have  been  ready,  and  have  been  paid  to  every 
holder  of  a  greenback  who  desired  it.  So  complete  was  the  success 
of  resumption  that  all  the  notes  presented  for  redemption  since  the 
1st  of  January,  and  prior  to  the  1st  of  July,  amount  to  $7,976,698, 
while  gold  coin  has  been  freely  deposited  in  the  Treasury,  in  ex 
change  for  United  States  notes.  The  total  amount  of  gold  coin 
and  bullion  in  the  Treasury  on  the  2d  day  of  January,  1879,  was 
$135,382,639.42.  On  the  1st  day  of  this  month  the 'amount  of 
such  coin  and  bullion  was  $135,436,474.62;  and  the  amount  of 
silver  dollars  has  increased  from  $16,697,338  in  January  to  $28,- 
147,351  July  1st. 

The  law  provided  for  the  redemption  of  United  States  notes  only 
at  the  sub-treasury  at  New -York,  and  captious  critics,  who  said 
that  resumption  was  a  sham,  objected  that  notes  were  not  redeemed 
in  other  parts  of  the  United  States.  But,  in  fact,  resumption  did 
occur  in  all  parts  of  the  United  States;  and  in  the  far  west,  and  in 
California,  greenbacks  rose  to  and  are  now  at  a  premium.  To  re 
move  the  complaints  of  a  few  persons,  that  they  could  not  get  gold 
coin  in  Philadelphia  and  other  cities,  the  Treasury  has  supplied 
the  demand  for  gold  coin  wherever  it  has  arisen;  but  United  States 
notes  being  redeemable  in  coin,  are  so  much  more  convenient  for 
all  the  uses  of  life  that,  in  practice,  they  are  preferred  every 
where,  and  are  now  in  full  circulation  and  credit,  not  only  in 
every  part  of  the  United  States,  but  in  every  leading  European 
city,  and  in  the  islands  of  the  Pacific  ocean. 

RESUMPTION  NOT  AIDED  BY   CONGRESS. 

No  assistance  whatever  was  extended  by  Congress  in  aid  of  re 
sumption.  On  the  contrary,  it  increased  the  minimum  of  United 
States  notes,  upon  which  resumption  was  to  be  maintained,  from 
$300,000,000  to  $346.681,016.  It  recently  required  the  redemption 
of  fractional  coin  as  well  as  United  States  notes.  By  pending 
measures  of  the  most  dangerous  character,  and  by  continual  agi 
tation,  it  greatly  disturbed  the  public  credit,  and  made  the  task  of 
the  Department  much  more  difficult  and  its  means  much  less.  It 
reduced  the  revenue  from  taxes  on  tobacco  to  tjie  extent  of  eight 
or  nine  millions  annually.  It  largely  increased  the  aggregate  of 
appropriations. 


xvin.]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  247 

The  annual  appropriations  for  the  fiscal  years  ending  June  30, 
1878,  1879,  and  18SO,  exclusive  of  appropriations  for  public  debt 
and  other  permanent  appropriations,  were -as  follows  : 

1878, $114,069,483  13 

1879, 146,304,309*21 

'  1880, 161,808,934  00 

While  Congress  reduced  the  revenues  and  increased  appropria-i 
tions,  it  neither  levied  new  taxes  nor  gave  authority  to  borrow 
money  to  meet  these  extraordinary  demands,  but  used  the  sinking- 
fund  which  was  specifically  set  aside  by  law  for  the  reduction  of 
the  public  debt;  thus  arresting  the  established  policy  of  the  Re- 
publican  party  of  yearly  reducing  the  debt. 

In  the  last  session  it  appropriated  $26,800,000  for  arrears  of  pen 
sions,  debts  due  a  most  worthy  class  of  citizens,  but  provided  no 
means  for  their  payment.  It  applied  for  this  purpose  the  fund  in 
the  Treasury  provided  by  law  for  the  redemption  of  fractional 
currency,  leaving  this  form  of  debt  to  be  paid  out  of  current  rev 
enue.  Fortunately,  the  increase  of  revenue  caused  by  resumption 
and  reviving  industries  will,  I  hope,  enable  the  Treasury  to  pay 
every  dollar  appropriated  for  arrears  of  pensions  by  the  first  of 
January  next,  without  any  other  increase  of  the  public  debt  than 
that  caused  by  the  temporary  application  of  the  fund  for  the 
redemption  of  fractional  currency.  The  ability  to  pay  these  de 
mands  is  largely  due  to  economies  effected  in  collecting  the  cus 
toms  duties  and  other  executive  savings. 

RESULTS    OF    RESUMPTION. 

Let  us  now  see  what  have  been  the  legitimate  results  of  resump 
tion. 

Since  the  1st  of  January,  and  prior  to  the  1st  of  July,  1879,  we 
have  paid  about  $1,000,000  coin  certificates  with  United  States 
notes,  and  have  paid  $119,501,109.93  United  States  bonds  with 
United  States  notes.  Of  the  enormous  sum  of  called  bonds  paid 
by  the  Treasury,  so  far  as  is  known,  not  a  dollar  has  been  de 
manded  in  coin,  and  thus  by  resumption  we  have  paid,  and  are 
paying  daily,  the  five-twenty  and  ten-forty  bonds  in  currency. 

Prior  to  definite  preparations  for  resumption,  it  was  impossible 


248  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

to  sell  four  per  cent,  bonds  of  the  United  States  at  par  in  coin. 
After  such  preparations  we  were  able  to  sell  in  1877,  $75,000,000 
four  per  cents.,  and  in  1878,  $128,685,450;  but  the  moment  that 
resumption  was  complete,  the  sale  of  bonds  increased  with  unex 
pected  rapidity.  We  sold  in  the  month  of  January,  1879,  $158,- 
904,100,  and  in  the  month  of  February,  $90,101,750.  In  the 
month  of  March  the  sales  fell  to  $20,852,100,  chiefly  by  reason  of 
a  fear  that  the  enormous  payments  required  under  the  refunding 
act  during  the  months  of  April  and  May  would  create  a  disturb 
ance  in  the  money  market,  but  this  fear  having  been  dissipated, 
by  the  1st  of  April  the  sales  were  rapidly  resumed,  and  in  four 
days  they  amounted  to  $73,252,300,  enough  to  cover  and  pay  off 
all  the  outstanding  five-twenty  bonds  of  the  United  States.  Thus, 
as  the  first  fruit  of  resumption,  within  one  hundred  days  after  its 
coming,  we  sold  $343,110,250  four  per  cent,  bonds,  with  which  to 
pay  an  equal  amount  of  six  per  cent,  bonds,  securing  a  saving  of 
$6,862,205  a  year.  Nor  is  this  all.  There  were  outstanding  at 
that  time  $194,566,300  five  per  cent,  ten-forty  bonds,  redeemable 
at  the  pleasure  of  the  United  States.  To  pay  off  these  bonds  the 
Treasury  Department  offered  8150,000,000  four  per  cent,  bonds  at 
a  premium  of  one-half  of  one  per  cent.,  the  residue  to  be  paid 
from  the  proceeds  of  ten-dollar  refunding  certificates  or  the  direct 
exchange  of  bonds.  Pending  the  preparation  of  this  offer,  it  was 
greatly  doubted  whether  the  Department  was  justified  in  demand 
ing  a  premium,  but  as  these  were  the  last  bonds  that  could  be 
offered  within  two  years  I  then  thought  a  premium  could  be 
secured,  and  would  have  demanded  a  higher  rate  hut  that  the 
law  required  the  refunding  certificates  to  be  exchanged  at  par  for 
lawful  money.  These  refunding  certificates  were  designed  to  fur 
nish  an  easy  opportunity  for  persons  of  limited  means  to  invest 
their  savings  in  small  sums,  and  Avere  of  great  importance,  not 
only  for  the  convenience  of  ail  classes  of  our  people,  but  to  in 
terest  them  in  the  advantages  and  stability  of  the  public  debt. 
Within  two  days  the  whole  $150,000,000  bonds  were  sold  upon 
the  terms  stated,  and  offers  were  made  for  the  whole  of  the  refund 
ing  certificates,  which  offers  were  declined,  and  the  certificates 
were  sold  by  postal  money-order  offices  throughout  the  United 
States,  and  were  eagerly  taken  in  sums  of  one  hundred  dollars. 


xvin.]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  249 

This  closed  all  the  refunding  operations  authorized  by  law,  for 
there  are  no  other  bonds  that  can  now  be  redeemed,  except  by 
purchase  in  the  open  market  at  their  market  value. 

The  annual  saving  in  the  interest-charge,  effected  by  these  re 
funding  operations,  since  the  1st  of  January  last,  is  $8,810,468, 
and  since  the  1st  of  March,  1877,  to  the  present  time,  $14,297,177. 

Sometimes  complaint  has  been  made  that,  during  this  process 
of  refunding,  the  amount  of  interest-bearing  debt  was  temporarily 
increased,  and  that  interest  was  paid  on  two  sets  of  bonds  at  the 
same  time.  This,  from  the  nature  of  things,  was  unavoidable 
under  the  provisions  of  the  refunding  act  of  1870.  By  that  act 
before  any  bond  can  be  redeemed,  notice  must  be  given  for  the 
period  of  three  months.  Before  that  notice  can  be  given,  bonds 
have  to  be  sold  and  the  money  either  collected  or  secured,  and 
this  process  necessarily  involves  the  payment  of  interest  for  three 
months,  not  only  upon  the  bonds  sold,  but  upon  those  to  be  re 
deemed.  Advantage  was  taken  of  this  fact  to  unjustly  arraign 
the  Department  for  a  matter  beyond  its  control.  A  constant  out 
cry  was  made  that  the  interest-bearing  debt  was  being  increased. 
The  debt  statement  would  necessarily  show  that,  during  the  three 
months,  two  sets  of  bonds  were  outstanding,  but  it  would  show 
also  that  the  money  was  in  the  Treasury,  and  this  being  deducted 
would  leave  the  balance  of  the  debt  as  before.  Thus,  if  you  owe 
a  thousand  dollars,  with  the  right  to  pay  it  at  your  pleasure,  and 
borrow  money  for  that  purpose,  you  will  have  two  notes  out 
standing  at  the  same  time  until  you  can  apply  the  borrowed 
money  to  the  payment  of  the  first  note. 

This  is  precisely  the  condition  the  United  States  was  in  when 
borrowing  money  to  pay  outstanding  bonds.  The  debt  statement 
of  July  1  shows  as  part  of  the  public  debt  the  whole  of  the  ten- 
forty  bonds,  and  also  the  whole  of  the  bonds  issued  for  their  pay 
ment,  but  also  shows  the  money  in  the  Treasury  to  pay  them.  In 
the  next  debt  statement  the  ten-forties  will  disappear,  or  such  as 
are  unpaid  will  appear  among  the  debt  bearing  no  interest.  The 
cash  in  the  Treasury  will  also  decrease  accordingly.  I  thought 
the  notice  required  by  the  law  was  entirely  too  long,  and  in  my 
annual  report  to  Congress,  Democratic  in  both  branches,  earnestly 
urged  a  shortening  of  the  period  to  thirty  days  or  less,  in  order  to 


250  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

save  this  double  interest,  but  the  recommendation  was  declined  or 
ignored.  If  any  one  is  to  be  held  responsible  for  the  double  in 
terest  it  should  be  Congress.  In  justice  to  the  Department,  it  is 
but  fair  to  state  that  all  the  loans  negotiated  for  the  last  two 
years  have  been  on  more  favorable  terms  than  any  loans  ever 
made  by  the  United  States.  They  were  generally  made  by  popu 
lar  subscriptions  by  the  people  directly.  The  saving  from  the 
amount  allowed  for  the  expense  of  negotiating  the  loan  is  over 
$1,100,000,  and  the  premium  exacted  on  4|  and  4  per  cent,  bonds 
amounts  to  $1,496,948.25.  I  can  say  without  fear  of  contradiction, 
that  no  nation  ever  negotiated  its  loans  at  a  less  cost  or  on  as 
favorable  terms.  The  sales  of  the  famous.  3  per  cent,  consols  of 
England,  when  made,  were  on  far  less  advantageous  terms  than 
the  United  States  was  able  to  secure  after  accomplishing  re 
sumption. 

The  resumption  of  specie  payments  has  had  the  same  beneficial 
effect  upon  the  business  of  private  citizens.  The  reduction  of  in 
terest  on  the  public  debt  has  made  it  possible  to  reduce  the  rate  on 
all  debts,  whether  State,  corporation,  or  private.  Nothing  is  more 
certain  than  that  irredeemable  money  necessarily  leads  to  the  in 
crease  of  the  rate  of  interest.  The  first  effect  of  its  issue  is  to 
reduce  the  rate  of  interest  and  to  advance  prices.  If  not  redeem 
able  in  coin  it  depreciates  in  value,  and  more  of  it  is  necessary  to 
conduct  business.  It  causes  overtrading  and  speculation,  not  only 
as  to  the  prices  of  commodities,  but  as  to  its  own  value.  This  is 
soon  shown  in  the  advance  of  the  rate  of  interest,  and  what  is 
called  a  scarcity  of  money.  This  general  rule  is  stated  by  such 
old  writers  as  Adam  Smith  and  Thomas  Tooke,  and  is  fully  veri 
fied  by  the  rate  of  interest  before  the  panic  and  since  resumption. 
Private  debts  are  now  being  rapidly  reduced  from  10  to  8,  and 
even  to  6  per  cent. 

The  State  of  New  York  has,  by  law,  reduced  the  rate  of  interest 
in  that  State  from  7  to  6  per  cent.  The  city  of  Providence  sold  4i 
per  cent,  bonds  at  above  par.  The  State  of  Pennsylvania  sold 
$2,000,000  4  per  cent,  bonds  at  above  par.  The  city  of  New  York 
sold  5  per  cent,  bridge  bonds  at  105.76.  Five  million  dollars  of 
Denver  and  Rio  Grande  Railway  Company  7  per  cent,  bonds  were 
subscribed  in  two  hours — the  first  time  for  years  that  money  has 


xviii.]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  251 

been  pledged  for  building  a  railroad.  All  securities  have  ad 
vanced  since  January  1  at  the  average  rate  of  10  per  cent.  Mort 
gages  at  from  8  to  10  per  cent,  are  daily  being  reduced  to  from  6 
to  8  per  cent.  Capital  is  again  seeking  investment  in  any  safe 
securities  that  offer. 

\Vith  the  first  decided  preparations  for  resumption  there  came 
slowly  a  revival  of  business;  with  the  success  of  resumption,  that 
revival  is  marked  in  nearly  every  branch  of  industry. 

I  do  not  propose  to  weary  you  with  a  mass  of  statistics,  but  will 
only  state  the  general  results  with  regard  to  a  few  leading  branches 
of  American  industry. 

The  increase  of  our  exports  of  domestic  merchandise  since  the 
period  of  the  panic,  is  without  example  in  our  history.  In  the  year 
ending  June  30,  1873,  the  amount  of  our  exports  was  $505,033,439. 
In  the  year  ending  June  1,  1879,  the  amount  of  our  exports  was 
$699,618,933.  In  the  five  years  preceding  the  panic  our  exports 
were  $2,013,702,648;  and  during  the  past  five  years  they  were 
$2,999,197,652. 

The  net  imports  of  merchandise  decreased  from  $624,687,727 
during  the  year  1873,  to  $422,895,034  in  1878,  or  32  per  cent.; 
whereas  the  value  of  our  exports  of  merchandise,  representing 
mainly  our  agricultural  and  manufacturing  products,  increased 
from  $505,033,439  in  1873,  to  §680,709,268  in  1878,  or  35  per 
cent. 

It  may  be  stated  generally  that  the  internal  commerce  of  the 
country  shows  a  gradual  increase  of  traffic  since  1873 — the  im 
provement  during  the  last  year  having  been  more  rapid  than 
during  any  preceding  year  since  1873.  The  tonnage  of  the  great 
railroads  from  the  East  to  the  West,  the  most  important  highways 
of  commerce  in  this  country,  shows  an  increase  since  1873  of  37£ 
per  cent.  The  production  of  wheat  and  corn,  the  two  leading 
cereal  products  of  the  country,  which  constitute  the  principal  part 
of  our  exports  of  breadstuff's,  indicates  during  the  last  year  a  large 
increase  over  the  production  of  1873.  The  production  of  corn  in 
1873,  was  932,000,000  bushels;  in  1878,  about  1,360,000,000.  Pro 
duction  of  wheat  in  1873,  281,000,000;  in  1878,  about  425,000,000. 

The  cotton  crop  of  the  United  States,  during  the  year  1878,  was 
larger  than  any  previous  crop  in  the  history  of  the  country.  Our 


252  HUN.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

exports  of  cotton  increased  from  1,200,000,000  pounds  in  1873,  to 
1,608,000,000  pounds  in  1878. 

The  quantity  of  wool  produced,  increased  from  158,000,000 
pounds  in  1873,  to  207,000,000  in  1878.  The  total  amount  which 
went  into  consumption,  including  domestic  production  and  im 
ports,  representing  the  manufacture  of  woolen  goods  in  the  United 
States,  increased  from  236,000,000  pounds  in  1873,  to  249,000,000 
pounds  in  1878. 

Even  our  shipping  interests,  engaged  in  foreign  trade— the  in 
dustry  most  depressed — show  some  signs  of  hopefulness.  Ships 
and  barks  are  the  classes  of  sailing  vessels  principally  employed 
in  foreign  trade.  The  average  number  of  vessels  of  these  two 
classes  built  during  each  of  the  years  1847  to  1858,  inclusive,  was 
248,  but  during  the  year  1871  the  number  was  only  40;  in  1872, 
only  15;  and  in  1873,  only  28.  Since  that  time,  however,  there 
has  been  a  considerable  improvement,  the  average  number  built 
during  each  of  the  last  five  years  being  a  little  more  than  82. 

The  total  tonnage  of  American  vessels  engaged  in  foreign  traffic, 
which,  as  I  have  already  stated,  fell  from  2,379,396  tons  in  1860,  to 
1,378,533  tons  in  1873,  has  since  that  time  increased  to  1,589,348 
tons  in  1878. 

Another  indication  of  increased  business  is  derived  from  a  state 
ment  of  the  exchanges  at  the  twenty-two  clearing-houses  in  the 
chief  cities  in  the  Union,  from  which  it  appears  that  for  the  first 
five  months  of  the  year  ending  June  30,  1878,  the  amount  of  ex 
changes  in  those  cities  was  $11,936,373,274,  and  for  the  same 
period  of  1879,  it  was  $14,350,492,229,  showing  an  increase  of  20.2 
per  cent,  this  year. 

I  might  extend  this  statistical  information  to  almost  every  de 
partment  of  industry  or  business,  but  it  is  scarcely  worth  while,  be 
cause  the  general  concurring  sentiment  of  the  whole  public  is  that, 
while  we  have  not  yet  recovered  from  the  languor  of  the  panic  of 
1873,  yet,  under  the  inspiring  influence  of  specie  payments,  the 
worst  is  past,  and  we  are  now  improving  in  every  branch  of  indus 
try.  I  am  not  foolish  enough  to  attribute  all  these  signs  to  the 
act  of  resumption.  No  doubt  it  is  largely  due  to  the  habits  of 
thrift,  economy,  and  industry  which  necessarily  followed  the  de 
pression  of  business,  largely  to  the  migration  of  people  thrown  out 


xvin.]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  253 

of  employment  who  have  found  homes  in  the  West,  but  mainly  to 
the  recuperative  energies  of  a  vigorous,  industrious,  and  active 
people.  What  I  wish  to  prove  is,  that  resumption — the  restora 
tion  of  our  currency  to  the  coin  standard— contributed  to  these 
beneficial  results,  and  it  belied  all  the  false  prophecies  made  as  to 
its  eflect. 

I  have  thus  stated  my  view  of  the  successful  execution  of  the 
policv  of  resumption,  and  of  the  beneficial  results  in  the  re 
duction  of  interest  on  the  public  debt  and  the  general  improve 
ment  of  business. 

OPPONENTS  TO   RESUMPTION. 

Now,  let  us  examine  the  specific  complaints  of  our  fellow-citizens 
who  have  been  heretofore  opposed  to  resumption  and  to  the  entire 
financial  policy  of  the  Republican  party. 

Of  what  do  they  complain  ? 

First,  they  said  resumption  would  contract  the  currency— that 
\ve  would  have  nothing  but  coin  in  circulation.  This  I  have 
shown  to  be  entirely  delusive.  The  Resumption  Act  provided  for 
no  contraction  of  the  currency,  but  Unjted  States  notes  were  to  be 
retired  only  as  a  greater  amount  of  bank  notes  were  issued.  The 
only  contraction  that  has  occurred  since  the  passage  of  the  Re 
sumption  Act  has  been  by  the  voluntary  withdrawal  by  national 
banks  of  a  portion  of  their  circulation  when  they  found  it  could 
not  be  profitably  employed  in  business.  Every  act  done  under  the 
Resumption  Act  tended  to  increase  rather  than  diminish  circula 
tion ;  and  now,  that  all  this  circulation  is  at  par  with  gold,  the 
coin  itself  becomes  an  important  factor  in  the  volume  of  circula 
tion,  and  swells  the  amount  that  is  available  for  the  transaction  of 
business. 

The  amount  of  coin  and  currency  in  circulation  the  1st  instant 
was  as  follows : 

United  States  notes, $346,681,016 

Fractional  currency, 15,842,605 

Certificates, 17,880,650 

Banknotes,        . 329,691,697 

Total,  ? $710,095,968 

Coin,  estimated,     .        ...        .        .        •          $332,443,947 


254  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP, 

Showing  an  aggregate  of  $1,042,539,915,  or  $21  11  per  inhab 
itant, 

The  amount  of  national  bank  notes  has  actually  increased  since 
1st  of  January  in  the  sum  of  §5,900,023,  so  that  the  result  of 
resumption  has  been  to  increase  instead  of  diminish  the  actual  cir 
culation. 

Again,  they  demanded  that  the  bonds  should  be  paid  in  green-1 
backs.  There  was  a  question,  upon  which  honest  men  fairly  dif 
fered,  whether  the  five-twenty  bonds  were  not  properly  payable  in 
United  States  notes.  They  insisted  that  this  should  be  done, 
though  the  payment  of  the  bonds  in  greenbacks  would  have  in 
creased  their  issue,  in  violation  of  the  limit  of  $400,000,000  pre 
scribed  by  the  loan  laws,  and  would  thus  have  kept  United  States 
notes  in  perpetual  dishonor  and  depreciation;  but  now  they  have 
been  so  paid  by  resumption.  All  the  five-twenty  and  ten-forty 
bonds  redeemed  this  year,  amounting  to  $537,676,550,  have  been 
paid  in  greenbacks,  and  the  interest  on  all  the  bonds  is  paid  in 
greenbacks,  and  all  this  is  done  without  raising  any  question  of 
good  faith  with  the  public  creditors. 

They  also  demanded  that  the  customs  duties  should  be  paid  in 
greenbacks.  This  is  now  daily  done,  without  question,  as  the  re 
sult  of  resumption. 

We  receive  United  States  notes  for  all  purposes  and  all  de 
mands,  and  pay  them  out  for  all  purposes  and  on  all  demands.  Re 
sumption  has  enabled  us  to  do  this,  It  has  accomplished  every  ob 
ject  which  the  greenbackers  sought  to  accomplish  by  the  repeal  of 
the  Resumption  Act.  Shonld  they  not  be  content?  What  more 
do  they  want?  Are  not  we,  who  have  brought  about  these  results, 
better  entitled  to  the  name  of  greenbackers  than  they  who  would 
forever  keep  the  greenback  as  a  dishonored  and  irredeemable 
note?  We  presided  over  the  birth  of  the  greenbacks,  and  guarded 
them  in  the  cradle.  The  Democratic  leaders  denounced  them  as 
a  fraud,  with  the  mark  of  Cain  on  their  brow,  as  worthless, 
to  be  bought  some  day  by  the  cord.  We  have  crowned  them 
with  honor.  They  are  no  longer  depreciated,  but  may  travel 
the  circuit  of  the  world  equal  to  the  best  coin  ever  issued  from 
the  mint. 

The   policy  of   the    modern   greenbacker  is    to  depreciate   the 


XVIIL]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  255 

greenback,  to  destroy  its  purchasing  power,  to  make  it  depend, 
not  upon  the  intrinsic  value  of  the  coin  into  which  it  can  be 
converted,  but  upon  some  imaginary  value  given  to  it  by  law. 
The  people  of  Maine  will  have  to  choose  between  those  green- 
backers  who  strictly  preserve  the  national  faith,  seek  to  maintain 
the  greenback  at  par  with  coin,  and  those  who,  with  utter  disre 
gard  of  the  public  faith,  wish  to  restore  the  old  state  of  affair* 
when  the  greenback  could  only  be  passed  at  a  discount,  and  could 
neither  be  received  for  customs  duties  nor  be  paid  upon  the  pub 
lic  debt.  They  would  revive  the  old  distinction  between  the 
bond-holder  and  the  note-holder,  when  a  100-cent  gold  dollar  was 
paid  to  the  bond-holder  and  an  80-cent  irredeemable  note  was  the 
pay  of  the  laborer.  We  would  have  one  money  for  all,  and  that 
good  money,  each  dollar  of  which  will  buy  100  cents'  worth  of 
food  and  clothing. 

One  would  suppose,  fellow-citizens,  that  our  greenback  friends, 
after  all  their  prophecies  had  been  proven  to  be  false  alarms, 
after  we  have  secured  and  enjoyed  for  a  brief  period  the  blessings 
of  a  sound  currency  redeemable  in  coin,  would  be  content  to  let 
well  enough  alone;  but,  dropping  the  resumption  act,  they  come 
to  the  front  with  a  new  set  of  dogmas,  and  invite  on  them  a  con 
test  with  the  Republican  party. 

Perhaps  the  fairest  way  in  which  I  can  reply  to  them  is  by  first 
quoting  the  platforms  of  their  party  in  Maine  and  Ohio,  where  the 
chief  political  contests  of  this  year  are  to  be  fought.  The  first 
clause  of  the  Maine  platform  is  as  follows: 

"The  convention  congratulates  the  people  of  Maine  that  the  in 
crease  of  coin  and  bonded  indebtedness  of  the  Government,  in 
time  of  profound  peace,  from  $1,100,000,000  in  18G5,  to  $2,000,- 
000,000  in  1879,  is  a  fact  so  startling  as  to  alarm  every  friend  of 
the  country;  that  the  reduction  of  the  rate  of  coin  interest  and 
at  the  same  time  increasing  the  principal  to  such  an  amount  an 
to  vastly  increase  the  coin  interest  continually,  under  the  pretext 
of  economy,  by  the  reduction  of  the  rate  of  interest,  is  such  a 
fraud  upon  the  people  as  to  merit  the  most  severe  condemnation." 

This  is  a  curious  medley  of  deceptive  statements,  the  purpose  of 
which  would  seem  to  be  to  show  that  the  public  debt  was  increased, 
in  a  time  of  profound  peace,  from  §1,100,000,000  in  1865,  to 


256  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

$2,000,000,000  in  1879,  while,  in  truth  and  in  fact,  the  interest- 
bearing  debt,  in  1865,  was  82,381,530,294.96,  and  now,  that  the  re 
funding  operations  are  completed,  it  is  $1,797,643,700.  It  is  true 
that  the  debt,  in  1865,  was  not  all  payable  in  coin;  $217,024,160 
was  in  the  form  of  compound-interest  notes  bearing  6  per  cent, 
compound  interest,  and  $830,000,000  was  payable  in  treasury 
notes  bearing  currency  interest  at  the  rate  of  7T3ff  per  cent. ; 
but  the  latter,  having  matured,  was  converted  eleven  years  ago 
into  6  per  cent,  coin-bonds,  a  decrease  of  the  rate  of  interest  of 
lT3o  per  cent.  In  fact,  the  interest-bearing  debt  has  been  reduced, 
since  1865,  in  the  sum  of  $583,886,594.96,  and  the  annual  interest 
charge  on  this  debt  has  been  reduced  from  $150,977,697.87  to  $83,- 
773,778.50. 

The  statement,  as  made,  would  be  absolutely  false  but  for  the 
equivocation  upon  the  words  "coin  interest." 

Now  all  our  interest,  though  nominally  payable  in  coin,  is,  in 
fact,  paid  in  currency.  Our  friends,  who  never  mislead,  or  hardly 
ever,  make  their  statement  technically  true,  but  really  false,  for  the 
interest-bearing  debt  has  been  reduced  near  $600,000,000  and  the 
yearly  interest  $67,000,000. 

Exactly  how  our  greenback  friends  can  say  that  the  reduction 
of  the  rate  of  interest,  under  the  pretext  of  economy,  "is  such  a 
fraud  on  the  people  as  to  merit  the  most  severe  condemnation," 
is  past  finding  out.  The  truth  is  that  the  intelligent  commercial 
world,  except  only  the  greenbackers,  has  been  full  of  praise  and 
wonder  at  the  remarkable  success  of  the  Government  of  the  United 
States  in  the  reduction  of  its  debt  and  interest.  No  nation  in  the 
world,  in  ancient  or  in  modern  times,  has,  in  so  short  a  period, 
so  greatly  reduced  the  immense  burden  of  debt  that  weighed  upon 
us  at  the  close  of  the  war  as  we  have ;  so  that  now  the  tax  on 
whisky  and  tobacco  will  more  than  pay  the  entire  interest  of  the 
public  debt. 

But  they  say  that  this  administration  has  increased  the  in 
terest-bearing  debt,  and  they  point  to  the  monthly  debt  statement 
for  proof.  I  have  already  explained  how  this  was  temporarily 
done  in  the  process  of  refunding  the  debt.  But  on  the  debt  state 
ments  hereafter  the  ten-forty  and  five-twenty  bonds  will  disappear 
or  cease  to  bear  interest;  so  that  our  greenback  friends  will  not, 


XVIIL]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  257 

hereafter,  be  misled  by  this  operation  nor  be   able  to   mislead 
others. 

Again,  they  resolve  as  follows  : 

"That  we  favor  the  unlimited  coinage  of  gold  and  silver,  to  be 
supplemented  by  full  legal-tender  paper  money  sufficient  to  trans 
act  the  business  of  the  country." 

We  have  now  unlimited  coinage  of  gold,  and  there  is  but  little, 
if  any,  objection  to  an  unlimited  coinage  of  silver  at  its  market 
value. 

To  quote  from  Mr.  Grochen  : 

"It  was  for  the  interest  of  commerce  generally,  both  in  India 
and  Europe,  that  the  whole  of  our  commercial  transactions  should 
be  based  upon  an  aggregate  of  silver  and  gold  together,  rather 
than  that  it  should  rest  only  upon  gold."  > 

This  was  the  view  taken  by  Hamilton  and  Jefferson.  But  to 
secure  such  a  basis  the  coinage  ratio  must  be  the  market  ratio. 
Free  coinage  of  silver  at  the  ratio  of  16  to  1  means  the  single 
standard  of  silver.  What  we  object  to  is  the  coinage  of  a  silver 
dollar  which  is  worth  only  eighty-five  cents,  and  which  thus  will 
demonetize  gold  and  leave  us  only  silver  as  the  basis  of  our  coin 
age.  Silver  coin  has  been  made  the  football  of  demagogues,  until 
now  many  persons  are  led  to  believe  that  the  Republican  party  is 
opposed  to  the  coinage  of  silver,  while  it  was  the  Republican  party, 
and  the  resumption  act  itself,  that  provided  for  the  recoinage  of 
silver,  introduced  it  into  current  use  in  place  of  the  fractional 
currency,  and  stands  ready  now  to  coin  it  without  limit  at  its  mar 
ket  ratio  to  gold,  while  the  greenback  element  wishes  to  coin  a 
silver  dollar  worth  only  on  the  average  eighty-five  cents,  and  with 
a  view  to  cheapen  money,  to  impair  contracts,  and  to  banish  gold. 
They  refuse  to  recognize  the  fact,  acknowledged  by  all  the  world 
beside,  that,  by  the  law  of  trade,  silver  has  depreciated  in  com 
parative  value  with  gold,  and  that  the  silver  dollar  of  twenty  years 
ago  is  now  intrinsically  worth  fifteen  per  cent,  less,  compared  with 
gold,  than  it  was  then.  We  have  tried  the  experiment  of  coining 
the  silver  dollar  since  it  was  authorized  in  1878,  and  have  coined 
$35,801,000.  Every  effort  has  been  made  to  put  it  in  circulation 
without  forcing  it  upon  unwilling  persons,  but  the  Treasury 
Department  hns  only  been  able  to  issue  $13,859,942.  of  which 
22 


258  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

$6,518,912  have  been  since  returned  to  the  Treasury.  The  sensible 
course  to  be  pursued  with  the  silver  question  is  to  treat  it  as  a 
practical  one,  and  to  coin  it  without  limit  only  when  the  commer 
cial  nations  have  agreed  upon  a  market  ratio  upon  which  they  can 
all  stand.  It  is  now  believed  that  this  can  be  brought  about  by 
commercial  treaties,  and  a  negotiation  is  now  pending  for  that 
purpose.  In  the  meantime,  silver  coin  should  be  limited  in 
amount  to  a  sum  that  can  be  maintained  at  par  with  gold  coin 
irrespective  of  its  value.  As  to  supplementing  the  coinage  by  full 
legal-tender  paper  money  sufficient  to  transact  the  business  of  the 
country,  this  is  all  well  enough,  except  that  the  amount  should  be 
limited  to  that  amount  which  can  be  maintained  at  par  in  coin; 
otherwise  you  have  paper  money  fluctuating  in  value,  variable  as 
the  shade,  and  a  recurrence  of  all  the  evils  which  we  have  suffered 
since  the  panic.  There  is  but  one  way  of  testing  the  amount  of 
paper  money  that  is  sufficient  to  transact  the  business  of  the  coun 
try,  and  that  is  by  its  convertibility  into  coin  on  the  demand  of  the 
holder. 

Again,  they  say  that  they  favor  the  immediate  use  of  the  coin  in 
the  Treasury  for  the  reduction  of  the  bonded  debt. 

This  proposition  is  the  purest  demagoguism,  unless  it  is  desira 
ble  to  have  irredeemable  paper  money  depending  for  its  value 
only  upon  the  mandate  of  the  Government,  or  what  is  called  fiat 
money.  If  we  propose  to  redeem  our  money,  we  must  have  in  the 
Treasury  coin  sufficient  to  meet  any  sudden  demand.  The  larger 
the  amount  and  the  greater  the  certainty  of  redemption  when  de 
manded,  the  less  demand  there  will  be.  As  a  matter  of  course,  by 
holding  this  coin  in  the  Treasury  we  lose  the  interest  that  might 
be  saved  by  its  application  in  the  payment  of  the  debt.  The 
amount  of  interest  upon  the  bonds  sold  for  resumption  purposes  is 
$3,925,000,  and  this  is  the  only  price  we  pay  for  the  maintenance 
of  resumption;  but  to  compensate  for  this,  we  have  already,  since 
resumption,  saved  in  the  process  of  refunding  $14,297,177  a  year, 
and  are  now  enjoying  the  benefits  of  reviving  industry  and  hopeful 
prosperity,  largely  the  result  of  the  maintenance  of  specie  pay 
ments.  Without  a  large  reserve  of  coin,  a  combination  of  brokers 
or  bankers  wishing  to  put  up  the  rate  of  interest,  or  to  speculate 
in  the  market,  could  any  day  endanger  resumption  or  make  a 


xviii.]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  259 

panic.  It  is  hard  to  please  our  greenback  friends.  A  year  ago 
they  protested  we  could  not  accumulate  enough  gold  to  maintain 
resumption,  and  now,  after  resumption,  they  protest  that  we  have 
got  too  much. 

They  say  they  favor  the  substitution  of  greenbacks  for  national 
bank  notes. 

This  question  of  the  continuance  of  the  national  bank  notes  is 
one  of  grave  difficulty,  which  should  be  taken  up  by  the  people  of 
the  United  States,  and  considered  and  discussed  with  the  utmost 
care.  I  am  not  specially  the  advocate  of  any  kind  of  banks;  but 
it  is  certain  that  the  national  banks  are  the  best  that  ever  were 
devised — conceded  to  be  so  by  the  leading  economists  of  other 
nations,  and  proven  to  be  so  in  our  own  country  by  a  comparison 
with  the  State  banks.  They  are  generally  distributed  throughout 
the  United  States,  and  form  local  agencies  to  promote  exchanges. 
Their  notes  are  absolutely  secure  beyond  peradventure.  They  are 
guarded  against  counterfeiting  so  successfully  that  scarcely  any 
loss  happens  in  this  way.  Compared  with  the  old  system  of  State 
banks,  they  are  in  every  respect  superior,  and  no  sensible  man 
would  exchange  the  national  system  for  the  State  bank  system. 

These  banks  are  free,  are  organized  under  general  law  open  to 
all  alike;  so  that  the  business  of  banking  is  as  free  as  that  of 
blacksmithing.  There  is  no  monopoly  in  it,  except  that  only  men 
having  money  can  bank,  precisely  as  only  those  can  farm  who 
either  own  or  rent  land.  These  banks  are  chartered  for  twenty 
years,  and  the  earliest  to  expire  will  be  in  1883;  so  that  the  ques 
tion  of  their  discontinuance  can  not  honestly  be  determined  until 
then.  The  substitution  of  greenbacks  for  bank  notes,  if  seriously 
attempted,  would  make  such  a  stringency  in  money,  and  such  a 
disturbance  in  business,  that  in  comparison  with  it  the  panic  of 
1873  would  be  but  a  shower  to  a  hurricane.  The  withdrawal  of 
the  circulating  notes  from  the  banks  would,  necessarily,  compel 
the  sale  of  the  bonds  deposited  for  their  security,  and  this  would 
unquestionably  lead  to  the  collection  of  loans  and  discounts, 
which  would  affect  every  village  and  hamlet  in  the  land. 

It  is  objected  to  the  national  banks  that  they  draw  interest  on 
the  United  States  bonds  deposited  by  them,  and  also  on  the  circu 
lating  notes  issued  by  them.  As  to  the  bonds  held  by  them,  they 


260  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

are  the  property  of  the  stockholders,  and  not  the  property  of  the 
Government.  We  require  them  as  security  to  the  holders  of  the 
notes,  because  it  is  the  best  security.  If  the  bank  goes  out  of  ex 
istence  the  interest  of  the  bonds  will  still  have  to  be  paid  by  the 
Government.  As  to  the  circulating  notes,  a  part  of  them  must  be 
held  in  reserve  and  a  part  loaned  to  business  men;  but  for  this 
privilege,  open  to  all  alike,  they  have  paid  to  the  National  and 
State  governments,  taxes  averaging  $16,908,181  a  year  for  the  last 
ten  years,  a  sum  greater  than  five  per  cent,  of  the  entire  amount 
of  their  circulating  notes.  If  the  tax  is  not  sufficient  you  can  in 
crease  it.  But,  it  is  said,  the  Government  might  issue  these  circu 
lating  notes  and  save  interest.  In  doing  so,  however,  it  would  lose 
at  once  the  taxes  collected  from  the  banks ;  it  would  violate  the 
public  faith,  pledged  in  an  express  provision  of  the  law  creating 
the  public  debt,  that  the  amount  of  United  States  notes  shall  not 
exceed  $400,000,000 ;  it  would  make  necessary  larger  reserves  to 
maintain  resumption  on  the  increased  amount  of  United  States 
notes,  and  would  eventually  lead  to  the  abandonment  of  all  idea 
of  a  specie  standard,  and  again  launch  the  country  on  the  sea  of 
irredeemable  money,  with  the  inevitable  result  of  wild  speculation, 
panic,  and  bankruptcy.  Can  it  be  that  the  shrewd,  sagacious  peo 
ple  of  Maine  can  not  see  that  by  yielding  an  inch  to  these  dogmas 
that  threaten  the  public  faith  and  specie  resumption  they  open  the 
sluice-way  to  repudiation  and  communism  ?  Let  us  in. due  time, 
as  their  charters  expire,  deal  with  these  national  banks  as  may 
seem  best  for  the  public  interest,  preserving  always  the  public 
honor  and  the  specie  standard. 

This  platform  pays: 

"The  volume  of  our  money  should  not  vary  with  the  chance 
production  of  the  precious  metals  or  the  caprice  of  corporations." 

This  dogma  is  an  absurdity  on  its  face.  Money  is  only  needed 
to  buy  productions,  and  the  quantity,  value,  and  demand  for  pro 
ductions  create  a  necessity  for  more  or  less  money  in  precise  pro 
portion  to  their  amount.  A  fixed  volume  of  paper  money  is  what 
the  greenbackers  have  hitherto  complained  of;  and  one  of  the 
chief  merits  of  the  system  of  free  banking  is,  that  it  gives  an  op 
portunity  for  the  ebb  and  flow  of  currency,  the  increase  or  diminu 
tion  of  the  volume  depending,  not  upon  the  caprice  of  corporations, 


xviii.J  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  201 

but  upon  the  demand  and  necessity  for  currency.  In  this  respect 
national-bank  notes  have  greatly  the  advantage  of  paper  money 
issued  by  the  Government,  which  can  only  be  paid  out  according 
to  the  wants  and  necessities  of  the  Government  in  the  conduct  of 
public  business.  The  true  doctrine  is,  that  a  volume  of  paper 
money,  alway  redeemable  in  coin  and  maintained  at  par  by  ample 
reserves,  increasing  and  diminishing  according  to  the  demands  of 
business,  should  be  provided  by  the  National  Government  under 
general  laws,  free  and  open  to  all  alike.  Our  present  system, 
consisting  of  gold  and  silver  coin  equal  to  each  other,  and  United 
States  notes  and  bank  notes,  always  redeemable,  comes  nearer 
the  ideal  form  of  money  than  has  ever  heretofore  been  devised 
by  man. 

GREENBACK    POLICY    IN    OHIO. 

So  much  for  the  Maine  platform.  Let  us  turn  now  to  some 
dogmas  in  the  platform  of  the  greenbackers  in  Ohio.  They  say, 
first: 

"The  General  Government  should  issue  an  ample  volume  of 
full  legal-tender  currency  to  meet  the  business  needs  of  the  coun 
try,  and  to  promptly  pay  all  of  its  debts." 

Here  is  the  broad  doctrine  that  the  General  Government  must 
conduct  all  its  operations  with  fiat  money,  made  a  full  legal 
tender,  and  supply  enough  to  meet  the  business  needs  of  the  coun 
try.  How  much  does  this  dogma  demand  ?  For  the  latter  pur 
pose,  to  pay  its  debts,  it  would  need  about  $1,700,000,000,  and  for 
the  former  purpose,  according  to  a  moderate  estimate  of  a  conserv 
ative  greenbacker,  it  would  require  anywhere  from  $700,000,000 
to  $2,000,000,000  more.  In  other  words,  they  propose  to  strike  at 
the  foundation  of  all  values  by  the  issue  of  irredeemable  paper 
money,  to  be  used  a  part  in  paying  the  national  debt  in  violation 
of  the  public  faith,  and  the  balance  as  a  legal  tender  upon  all 
contracts  and  debts  between  private  citizens.  It  is  strange  that 
honest  men  should  proclaim  such  a  dogma  and  not  be  able  to  see 
that  the  only  effect  would  be  to  destroy  the  value  of  this  currency, 
and  to  compel  citizens  to  resort  to  barter,  and,  finally,  with  or 
without  law,  to  coin  again.  This  is  the  extremity  of  greenback- 
inm  in  Ohio. 


262  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

Again,  they  say,  "We  are  inflexibly  opposed  to  the  issue  by  the 
Government  of  interest-bearing  bonds  of  any  description  for  any 
purpose  whatever." 

If  this  dogma  had  been  adopted  by  the  Government,  it  would 
have  been  utterly  helpless  during  the  recent  war — without  credit, 
without  the  power  to  borrow  money,  without  the  po\ver  to  conduct 
the  operations  of  war,  or  to  carry  on  foreign  trade.  The  power  to 
borrow  money  is  indispensable  to  every  government  of  civilized 
man.  Barbarians  may  live  without  trade  or  contracts  or  debts, 
but  a  country  that  had  no  resources  except  to  issue  paper  money 
under  dogma  number  one,  and  denied  the  power  to  contract  debts 
under  dogma  number  two,  would  be  as  weak  as  a  rope  of  sand, 
and,  under  these  conditions,  our  Government  would  relapse  into 
anarchy  or  despotism. 

They  also  say:  "The  national-banking  system  should  be  im 
mediately  abolished." 

This  only  differs  from  the  Maine  platform  in  that  it  demands 
that  the  national  banks  shall  be  immediately  abolished.  They  will 
not  wait  a  year  or  a  day.  Without  warning  they  will  compel  the 
collection  of  all  the  notes  held  by  the  banks,  and  precipitate  ruin 
upon  every  business  man  or  manufacturer  in  the  country. 

They  further  say  :  ""VVe  demand  the  immediate  calling  in  and 
payment  of  all  United  States  bonds  in  full  legal-tender  money." 

This  is  still  more  monstrous,  when  it  is  remembered  that  no 
debt  of  the  United  States  is  now  due  or  redeemable ;  that  this  ad 
ministration  has  redeemed  all  the  bonds  that  have  matured  by 
the  issue  of  4  per  cent,  bonds,  in  the  way  I  have  already  stated. 
The  next  bonds  that  are  redeemable  are  those  known  as  the  long 
bonds  of  1881,  issued  before  the  legal-tender  act  was  passed,  and 
the  5  per  cent,  bonds  issued  under  the  refunding  act,  all  of  which 
are  expressly  payable  in  coin. 

It  will  be  seen  that  this  dogma  demands  that  we  should  violate 
the  express  stipulation  of  the  contract,  not  only  as  to  the  time 
when  the  bonds  shall  be  paid,  but  as  to  the  manner  in  which  they 
shall  be  paid.  There  was  at  one  time  an'honest  dispute  as  to  the 
terms  and  conditions  upon  which  the  five-twenty  bonds  would  be 
paid. 


XVin.]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  263 

PAYMENT   OF   BONDS   IN   GREENBACKS. 

I  have  been  arraigned  recently  in  your  city  for  inconsistency, 
because  ten  years  ago,  in  a  letter  to  Dr.  Mann,  I  insisted  that  by 
a  fair  construction  of  the  loan  acts  under  which  the  five-twenty 
bonds  were  issued  they  were  payable  in  greenbacks.  So  I  did 
contend,  and  so  I  say  now;  but  I  also  insisted  that  we  were  bound 
by  law  and  public  policy,  after  the  war  was  over,  to  advance  these 
notes  to  par  in  coin,  and  that  we  could  not  take  advantage  of  our 
own  wrong  in  postponing  the  redemption  of  United  States  notes  in 
order  to  pay  our  bonds  in  depreciated  and  dishonored  paper 
money ;  and  this  principle  was  the  basis  of  the  act  to  strengthen 
the  public  credit,  passed  March,  1869.  Well,  we  have  at  last  re 
deemed  our  pledge  to  the  note-holder,  and  we  have  now  paid  these 
very  five-twenty  bonds  in  United  States  notes  with  a  far  greater 
saving  than  if  we  had  paid  them  in  greenbacks  ten  years  ago,  and 
with  infinitely  greater  advantage  to  the  public  credit. 

There  is  now  no  public  debt  about  which  any  question  exists  as 
to  the  terms  and  conditions  upon  which  it  must  be  paid,  and  yet 
it  is  proposed  to  violate  these  conditions  by  the  wholesale,  and 
place  the  United  States  of  America  in  a  far  worse  position  of  dis 
honor  and  repudiation  than  Mississippi  or  Louisiana,  or  Egypt  or 
Turkey. 

Is  it  possible  to  go  farther  in  the  road  of  dishonor  than  is  pro 
posed  in  these  platforms? — and  yet  the  Democrats  of  the  State  of 
Maine,  members  of  the  old,  powerful  organization  which  for  half 
a  century  controlled  the  destinies  of  the  Government,  are  asked  a£ 
the  end  of  a  great  wnr  to  support  and  maintain  dogmas  which 
strike  at  the  public  honor,  the  public  faith,  and  all  the  cherished 
principles  and  aims  of  that  party  in  its  palmy  days.  You  are 
now  expected  to  adopt  the  crazy  dogma  of  extreme  opinions,  at 
war  with  every  thing  that  was  said  by  Jefferson,  or  Madison,  or 
Jackson,  or  any  of  your  time-honored. leaders.  I  know  that  it  is 
against  the  judgment,  against  the  instincts,  of  old-fashioned 
Democrats  to  train  under  such  a  banner,  and  I  appeal  to  them 
now  to  come  to  the  rescue  of  their  country — not  to  be  carried  by  a 
party  name  or  a  party  badge  to  the  dishonor  of  their  country  and 
the  shame  of  their  children. 


264  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP. 

I  have  sometimes  thought  that  the  Democrats  of  the  Northern 
States  have  been  led  through  devious  paths  enough  by  the  rebels 
of  the  South  in  their  effort  to  destroy  the  Government,  and  in  their 
later  movements  to  sap  and  mine  all  the  great  powers  of  the 
National  Government;  but  these  extreme  greenbackers,  as  they 
are  called,  ask  you  now  to  follow  them  in  a  voyage  more  danger 
ous,  upon  dogmas  that  can  not  meet  the  plain  common  sense  and 
reason  of  patriotic  citizens,  such  as  compose  the  great  body  of  the 
Democratic  party. 

One  of  the  members  of  Congress  from  the  State  of  Maine,  the 
Hon.  G.  W.  Ladd,  is  reported  to  have  paid  his  attention  to  me,  in 
a  speech  in  this  city,  in  the  following  language : 

"Mr.  Sherman  has  sold  one  hundred  and  ninety  millions  of 
four  per  cent,  bonds,  in  one  day,  to  bloodsuckers  who  were  chok 
ing  the  country,  and  he  should  be  impeached." 

By  this  act,  in  a  single  day,  the  Treasury  Department  saved  to 
the  people  of  the  United  States  the  sum  of  $1,900,000.  The 
"bloodsuckers"  to  whom  he  refers  are  those  who  purchased  the 
forty  millions  of  ten-dollar  refunding  certificates,  who  formed  in 
long  lines  in  front  of  eight  hundred  post-offices  in  'the  United 
States,  each  demanding  the  sum  of  one  hundred  dollars  or  less  of 
those  certificates  in  exchange  for  United  States  notes,  and  the  pur 
chasers  of  $150,000,000  United  States  bonds  taken  by  banks  to  be 
sold  again  to  citizens  and  corporations  throughout  the  United 
States  and  in  Europe,  bearing  the  lowest  rate  of  interest  at  which 
ihe  United  States  has  ever  been  able  to  negotiate  its  securities. 
The  proceeds  were,  within  ninety  days,  applied  to  the  payment 
of  bonds'  upon  which  for  sixteen  years  the  Government  of  the 
United  States  had  been  paying  five  per  cent,  in  gold.  These 
"  bloodsuckers  "  are  among  the  most  prominent  and  enterprising 
and  industrious  citizens  of  the  United  States,  anxious  and  will 
ing  to  trust  the  Government  with  their  earnings,  in  the  full  faith 
that  the  promises  made  to  them  upon  their  bonds  and  certificates 
will  be  faithfully  redeemed,  and  yet  they  are  denounced  by  this 
Congressman  with  terms  of  reproach,  and  I,  for  doing  what  the 
law  commanded  me  to  do,  and  which,  I  proudly  say  I  was  able 
to  do,  through  resumption  and  confidence  in  the  public  faith, 
"deserve  impeachment."  There  must  be  something,  fellow-citi^ 
zens.  in  this  craze  which  destrovs  the  reason  of  men. 


XVIIL]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  20ft 

The  Cincinnati  Enquirer  threw  out  what  was  intended 
to  be  a  slur  upon  Mr.  Sherman,  as  indicated  below.  Once 
it  was  intimated,  in  the  same  quarter,  that  he  was  making 
money  out  of  his  connection  with  the  Government.  To 
this  a  complete  answer  was  published,  by  the  same  paper, 
vindicating  Mr.  Sherman.  That  paper  does  not  hint  now, 
that  the  Secretary  is  leaving  $30,000,000  in  the  banks  for 
his  own  benefit.  It  is  probably  aware  of  what  is  a  fact, 
that  Mr.  Sherman  does  not  own  a  dollar's  worth  of  stock, 
except  $2,000  in  a  Mansfield  bank,  and  $5,000  in  a  Cleveland 
bank,  purchased  while  they  were  State  Banks  of  Ohio.  It 
is  now  hinted  that  this  is  intended  for  the  benefit  of  "Jay 
Cooke,  McCulloch  &  Co."  The  writer  is  not  aware  that 
Jay  Cooke  owns  any  thing  in  any  bank.  It  is  devoutly  to 
be  hoped  that  he  does.  If  the  treasury  of  the  United 
States  had  thirty  million  dollars  that  it  could  not  use 
for  a  few  days,  and  were  amply  secured  by  United  States 
bonds,  against  the  possibility  of  loss,  it  was  no  more  than 
justice  to  Mr.  Cooke  to  let  them  lie.  Mr.  Cooke  had  sold 
for  the  State  of  Pennsylvania  bonds  to  the  amount  of 
$3,000,000,  at  par,  for  three  per  cent.,  when  they  were 
about  to  offer  fifteen  per  cent,  to  help  the  Government. 
He  had  sold  bonds  for  the  Government,  $700,000,000  for 
three-eighths  of  one  per  cent.,  when  the  lowest  bid  else 
where  was  two  per  cent.  The  Government  owes  him  at 
least  its  kind  remembrance. 

But  these  ungrateful  attacks  upon  Secretary  Sherman, 
after  the  mighty  work  he  has  done,  costing  him  more  than 
twenty  years  of  intense  thought  and  hard  labor,  not  for  a 
party,  but  for  his  country,  should  arouse  the  indignation 
of  all  who  regard  their  country's  honor  more  than  their 
party's  pelf.  Every  man  that  can  take  his  greenback  dol 
lar  and  get  the  value  of  a  full  dollar  for  it,  should  blush  to 

23 


206  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN. 

accuse  Mr.  Sherman  of  any  sinister  motive  in  this  matter, 
and  deserves  to  be  frowned  down  by  every  honest  man. 
He  knows  that  the  guild  is  for  the  benefit  of  the  whole 
people,  and  it  would  be  a  violation  of  its  laws,  to  do  that 
wantonly  which  would  derange  the  business  of  the  country. 
Mr.  Sherman  explains  as  follows: 

GENTLEMEN  :  I  thank  you  for  your  kind  reception  in  this  busy 
mart  of  commerce.  I  know  that  you  are  business  men,  and  have 
no  time  to  waste ;  nor  have  I  any  speech  to  make  to  you,  except 
upon  one  matter  of  business,  which  affects  you  in  common  with 
all  the  people  of  the  United  States.  Some  criticism  has  been 
made  recently  in  respect  to  an  order  of  the  Treasury  Department, 
and  as  I  received  last  evening  the  official  documents  and  will  be 
able  to  make  the  matter  clear,  I  will  consume  a  few  moments  of 
your  time  to.  state  the  circumstances  and  the  character  of  the 
order  that  you  have  heard  so  much  about,  by  which  the  Treasury 
Department  refused  to  call  from  the  money' market  of  the  United 
States  about  fifty  million  of  United  States  notes  in  the  busiest 
season  of  the  year.  <  , 

You  know,  my  fellow-citizens,  that  the  great  refunding  opera 
tions  of  the  United  States  have  been  so  conducted  as  not  to  dis 
turb  the  money  market,  and  this  has  been  done  mainly  by  an  ex 
change  of  4  per  cent,  bonds  for  6  per  cent,  and  5  per  cent,  bonds, 
without  drawing  from  the  market  any  of  the  legal  tender  in  daily 
circulation.  The  process  proceeded  so,  smoothly  and  rapidly  that 
in  less  than  eight  months  over  five  hundred  millions  of  6  per 
cent,  bonds  were  exchanged  for  4  per  cent,  bonds.  In  July  last 
about  seventy  millions  of  called  bonds,  none  of  which  bore  in 
terest,  were  presented  at  the  treasury  for  payment,  and  there  were 
deposited  in  national  bank  depositories  about  fifty-five  million 
United  States  notes  or  coin  available  to  pay  called  bonds. 

When  I  returned  from  a  recent  visit  to  New  York  I  learned 
that,  under  the  order  that  I  myself  directed,  the  money  was  being 
drawn  from  the  depositories  very  rapidly,  but  at  the  same  time 
the  bonds  were  not  presented  at  the  treasury.  On  the  13th  day  of 
August  I  found  that  $6,000,000  of  United  States  notes  had  been 
drawn  from  the  market  in  New  York  in  excess  of  the  amount 


xvm.]  THE  PORTLAND  SPEECH.  267 

necessary  to  meet  the  called  bonds.  Then,  by  the  advice  of  Mr. 
Gilfillan,  the  Treasurer  of  the  United  States,  I  issued  an  order 
by  which  no  more  money  should  thereafter  be  called  from  the 
market,  except  enough  to  meet  the  called  bonds  as  presented. 
Here  is  the  order.  I  will  read  it : 

"TREASURY  DEPARTMENT,  August  13,  1879. 
"Hon.  James  Gilfillan,  Treasurer  United  States: 

"  SIR — With  a  view  to  closing,  as  soon  as  practicable,  the  ac 
counts  of  the  department  with  depository  banks  on  loan  account, 
without  unnecessary  disturbance  of  the  money  market,  or  the 
withdrawal  of  legal  tenders  from  current  business,  you  will  please 
receive  from  each  depositories  in  payment  called  bonds  to  be  cred 
ited  when  passed  through  the  Loan  Division.  You  will  require 
from  each  depositories  sufficient  money  in  addition  to  the  called 
bonds,  and  so  as  to  insure  the  withdrawal  of  all  deposits  on  loan 
account  on  or  before  the  1st  of  October  next.  The  letter  of  the 
department  of  March  26  is  modified  accordingly. 

"  Very  respectfully,  JOHN  SHERMAN,  Secretary." 

Now,  my  countrymen,  that  is  the  order  about  which  complaint 
has  been  made.  I  here  have  a  table  showing  the  condition  of  the 
Treasury  of  the  United  States  on  Saturday  evening  last.  At  pres 
ent,  or  on  Saturday  evening  last,  there  were  outstanding  called 
bonds,  uncovered,  $48,952,253.61,  in  all,  upon  which  interest  had 
ceased,  and  which  are  payable  on  demand,  and  the  money  was  on 
deposit.  We  had  deposited  in  national  bank  depositories,  secured 
absolutely  beyond  peradventure,  $32,947,613.51. 

So  we  had  drawn  from  the  national  depositories  over  $16,000,000 
legal-tender  notes  more  than  were  necessary  to  meet  outstanding 
claims. 

Now,  my  countrymen,  if  I  had  not  made  the  order  that  I  have 
read  to  you,  on  the  13th  of  August,  there  would  have  been  the 
most  infernal  howl  among  business  men  that  could  have  been 
described.  Suppose  that  I  had  not  issued  that  order,  and  that  I 
had  withdrawn  from  active  circulation  $32,000,000  legal-tender 
notes!  I  glory  in  that  order.  [Applause.]  It  was  the  best 
thing  to  do.  That  money  was  left  in  the  channels  of  trade  until  it 
was  needed  to  meet  the  called  bonds;  and,  since  the  day  of  that* 


268  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  [CHAP,  xvm.) 

order,  we  have  paid  more  than  $1,000,000  a  day  called  bonds,  with 
out  affecting  your  money  market.  We  intend  to  pursue  that  line 
of  policy,  and,  on  the  1st  of  October,  we  will  close  the  refunding 
operations  of  the  Government,  without  in  the  least  disturbing 
your  market. 

Now,  fellow-citizens,  merchants  and  traders,  let  me  congratu 
late  you  upon  the  auspicious  end  of  the  policy  of  resumption. 
[Applause.]  One  year  ago,  when  I  appeared  before  you,  there  was 
some  doubt  hanging  over  the  policy — there  were  some  clouds  in 
the  sky.  They  have  now  disappeared.  Even  the  most  doubtful 
man  feels  that  the  policy  adhered  to  has  been  a  wise  policy  for  the 
people  of  the  United  States. 


CONCLUSION. 

RESUMPTION   ACCOMPLISHED. 

JANUARY  1,  1879.  This  morning  dawned  upon  the 
United  States  producing  a  joy,  not  less  universal  than  that 
of  the  defeat  of  Cornwallis  or  the  surrender  at  Appomattox 
Court-house.  The  demonstrations  were  not  so  loud,  there  was 
not  so  much  powder  burnt,  nor  were  there  so  many  arms  and 
legs  shattered  and  lives  lost,  but  it  was  felt  to  be  a  grand 
victory.  The  hearts  of  the  people  were  full  of  rejoicing,  and 
the  papers  abounded  with  anecdotes  about  resumption.  One 
man  had  so  little  faith  in  its  success,  that  he  had  offered 
$50,000  for  the  privilege  of  being  the  first  to  receive  the 
specie,  and  when  the  day  came  he  could  not  have  sold  his 
chance  for  fifty  cents.  Another,  on  the  first  issue  of 
United  States  notes,  had  taken  a  five  dollar  bill,  pasted  it 
up  in  his  counting-room,  surrounded  it  with  a  broad  black 
line,  as  if  in  memoriam  of  the  departed  faith  of  the  United 
States,  not  expecting  ever  to  see  it  redeemed,  but  on  this 
day  his  mourning  was  turned  into  joy.  This  was  really 
a  happy  New  Year.  John  Sherman  had  given  to  all  the 
forty  millions  of  free  people  of  the  United  States  liberty 
to  purchase  a  bright  silver  or  gold  dollar.  There  was  a 
quiet  settled  smile  of  joy  upon  every  countenance  from  the 
Lakes  to  the  Gulf,  and  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific. 
The  joy  of  this  whole  nation  was  not  unlike  that  of  the 
new-born  Christian,  when  he  emerges  from  darkness  into 

(26* 


270  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN. 

light.  Not  unlike  in  its  cause  and  in  its  manifestation, 
the  joy  of  the  new-born  Christian  which  arises  from  his 
leaving  the  wrong,  and  commencing  to  do  right.  This  is 
just  what  took  place  in  our  national  guild  on  the  first  day 
of  January,  1879.  The  nation  in  that  respect  was  con 
verted  on  that  day,  and  it  was  done  by  the  FAITH  OF 
THE  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN.  That  joy  touched  a 
chord  of  sympathy,  even  across  the  dashing  billows  of  the 
Atlantic.  The  great  Thunderer  on  the  banks  of  the  v 
Thames  roared  with  approbation,  and  the  antiquated  court 
of  old  Spain  sent  a  note  of  commendation  through  Secre 
tary  Evarts  to  the  Hon.  John  Sherman,  for  his  grand 
achievement.  All  nations  rejoiced  with  us  that  day.  It 
wa>  u  grand  national  victory,  but  there  was  no  victim,  no 
gory  battle-field,  no  groans  of  the  wounded,  no  mourning 
widows,  and  orphans,  and  captives.  All  was  peace  on  all 
sides. 

Some  say  it  was  no  great  trick  of  Secretary  Sherman  to 
bring  .about  specie  payments.  The  balance  of  trade  was 
immensely  in  our  favor.  Europe  and  Asia  were  buying 
more  and  more  of  us,  and  we  less  and  less  of  them.  Our 
bonds,  in  fact,  were  rapidly  coming  home,  not  through 
fear,  but  through  the  necessity  of  trade.  Money  was 
plenty  and  cheap.  Why,  it  was  nothing  at  all  to  resume. 
So  it  was  nothing  at  all  to  make  an  egg  stand  on  the  little 
end,  after  Columbus  showed  how.  It  was  easy  to  come  to 
America,  after  the  faith  of  the  great  discoverer  found  the 
way.  Just  so  it  is  with  resumption.  It  seems  easy  enough 
now.  It  is  a  wonder  we  did  not  all  see  it  before,  but  we 
did  not?  John  Sherman  saw  it,  and  told  us  so  long  before  , 
the  panic.  He  told  us  so  during  the  panic.  He  has  told 
us  so  since  the  panic,  and  he  has  labored  night  and  day, 
early  and  late,  as  no  slave  in  the  mines  of  Golconda  ever 


RESUMPTION  ACCOMPLISHED.  271 

labored  for  gems ;  he  has  written  and  talked  for  years  to 
convince  us  that  faith  only  was  needed  to  resume  at  any 
time.  He  has  struggled  and  fought  with  both  Democrats 
and  Kepublicans  to  bring  it  about.  Now  it  is  done,  and  it 
was  John  Sherman's  faith  that  did  it,  or,  rather,  that  per 
suaded  the  nation  to  do  it,  and  for  this  he  is  entitled  to 
the  highest  honors  this  nation  can  bestow.  In  truth  he 
has  them  now.  There  is  no  higher  niche  of  fame  for  him 
to  reach  in  THIS  world. 

As  an  evidence  of  the  appreciation  in  which  he  is  held 
at  his  home,  the  following -remarks  of  Col.  Fink  at  his  re 
ception  here  in  Mansfield,  August  21,  1879,  are  annexed: 

"My  FELLOW-CITIZENS: — We  all  love  Mansfield,  we 
love  old  Richland "county,  and  we  love  dearly  this  proud 
State  of  Ohio;  but  more  than  all  we  love  this  glorious  Re 
publican  nation.  No  one  of  us  all  would  be  willing  that 
other  lines  than  the  swelling  sea  that  .breaks  upon  either 
shore,  should  bound  our  native  land.  No  less  than  we 
love  this  country,  we  love  its  laws.  For  them  has  our 
distinguished  townsman  struggled  in  the  long  years  of  his 
public  life.  By  these  struggles  has  he  been  fitted,  and  by 
wisdom  gained  to  guide,  until  he  stands  a  height  that 
needs  no  pedestal. 

"  We  welcome  our  townsman  to-night  as  a  neighbor  and 
citizen,  yet  more  than  welcome  him— America's  greatest 
Financier.  He  is  not  ours '  alone,  but  wherever  American 
air  is  breathed  there  he  is  owned. 

"  Well  may  our  faces  be  wreathed  in  smiles  and  our  hearts 
filled  with  gladness,  as  he  again  comes  among  us  to  take 
us  by  the  hand  and  speak  words  of  cheer  for  the  hopeful 
prosperity  of  the  land  we  love  so  well.  He  comes  to  us 
fresh  from  other  fields  where  his  voice  has  been  heard,  and 
his  words  have  been  spoken  in  the  cause  of  good  govern- 


272  HON.  JOHN  SHERMAN. 

ment.  Aud  now,  he  is  to  address  us  to-night  and  tell  of 
the  work  so  nobly  going  on.  But  your  ears  are  attuned  to 
his  voice,  and  your  hearts  are  anxious  for  the  words  of  his 
lips;  therefore,  allow  me  to  present  you  the  Hon.  John 
Sherman,  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  of  the  United  States.'' 

After  a  well-timed  speech  by  the  Secretary,  Col.  Fink 
again  rose  and  said: 

"My  friend  says  I  set  him  up  too  high,  but  you  all  re 
member  when  a  compliment  had  been  paid  to  General 
Washington,  and  he  arose  to  reply,  but  the  words  would 
not  come,  and  the  speaker  said,  '  Sit  down,  Mr.  Washing 
ton,  sit  down;  your  modesty  is  only  equaled  by  your  worth.' 
We  know  that  the  spindles  are  again  turning  where  once 
they  were  still.  We  see  the  blazing  furnaces  that  once  were 
dark.  We  again  hear  the  buzzing  work-shops  all  over  this 
broad  land,  and  growing  confidence  and  returning  pros 
perity  are  bringing  happiness  again  to  all  our  people;  and 
wherever  the  old  flag  floats  on  land  and  on  sea — the  emblem 
of  our  nationality — the  greenback  dollar  passes  as  gold, 
based  upon  the  credit  of  our  nation's  banner.  To  his  cool 
brain  and  strong  heart  in  the  face  of  an  opposition  from 
which  lesser  men  would  have  recoiled,  we  owe  it  all.  He 
is  worthy  of  our  highest  thoughts,  for  place  your  right  hand 
upon  his  great  heart,  and  it  will  beat  America  at  every 
pulse. 

"Such  is  our  own  townsman;  and  as  a  warrant  of  your 
good  will,  up  with  your  hats  and  open  your  lips,  and  now 
three  cheers  for  the  great  financial  Secretary." 

A  large  concourse  responded  with  three  times  three. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
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